


Idoneus [UNFINISHED]

by madamerioulette



Category: Marvel (Comics), Young Avengers
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Multi, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-03
Updated: 2014-05-20
Packaged: 2018-01-11 01:23:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 60,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1166928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madamerioulette/pseuds/madamerioulette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In another universe, the life of a young billionaire who had just recently inherited one of the world’s largest weapons manufacturing companies might have seemed spectacular. Of course, when people looked up to superheroes the way they did these days, a lot of lifestyles seemed to share the same insignificance.</p><p>Or an AU setting where superheroes are common crop, Thor plays big brother through Tony, SHIELD plays monopoly, and young avengers take on a new meaning. This in no way encompasses comic-verse timelines.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. the world must be so boring

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Young Avengers, Children’s Crusade, and Gillen’s Journey into Mystery. While I said this doesn’t encompass any comic-verse timelines, there may be semi-spoilers for anyone who hasn’t read and wants to eventually read the previously stated comics, Siege, and Thor #617.

In another universe, the life of a young billionaire who had just recently inherited one of the world’s largest weapons manufacturing companies might have seemed spectacular. A private jet, a city mansion, a collection of classic cars, and more money one could ever possibly need at the age of eighteen. The girls, the parties, the blown apart fiasco the next morning in the tabloids – it was a rich lifestyle, an unhealthy but looked up to kind of life that may have made people want it. People lined up to get a taste of it, to party next to the illustrious young man, to bed him, to become business partners, to strike deals with him. Maybe, in another life, Tony Stark’s life may have seemed extravagant and larger than anything the world had ever seen. His reality didn’t encompass any of that. No girls, no heartthrobs, no high standard of the American dream; just money and a weapons manufacturing company spiraling down the toilet because their president had died two months ago and could possibly be in the hands of an irresponsible, party-going, self-destructive young man in three short years. In this reality, Tony Stark’s life was boring, insignificant, a black smudge in the books of history. Unhealthy, uncivilized, uncouth. Of course, when people looked up to superheroes the way they did these days, a lot of lifestyles seemed to share the same insignificance.

Despite the money and fame and luxuries only a few could so easily afford, Tony was boring. Every morning, after dragging himself into the bathroom, his reflection scowled at him. Such common brown hair, always unkempt, and dull blue eyes surrounded by heavy dark circles that called to the late nights in the lab. At least what beard was straining through was kept clean and cut. After careful scrutinizing, he washed it away in the shower, dressed, fed himself, and worked in his lab. A genius, really, but nothing like the stretchable Dr. Reed Richards or the mysterious Dr. Strange. Perhaps equal in intelligence, but Tony couldn’t stretch himself around the world without breaking something nor could he call upon the mystical dark arts of magic. Boring. Television had lost all form of interest, especially after his father’s death. It was Howard this and Howard that, his son the shadow, the soul savior of the company or the doom of deadly bankrupt. He hadn’t watched television in a long time; he preferred the roaring chords of AC/DC while he tinkered away in his lab.

Tony Stark didn’t have powers, he couldn’t do the hero thing, and so as the world made their peace with Howard Stark and theorized about his son, he kept to himself in the lab, creating a worthwhile way to live out his life. This time, outside of his father’s shadow. But that was nowhere near done; in fact the idea was still on hologram blueprints. Yet here he was sitting in a casual black car next to Thor – the actual God of Thunder – on his way to S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters. Those people had no need for people like Tony, no need for the ordinary, and certainly no need for the son of a man who despised these freakish mutants with all his spirit.

Okay so maybe once when Tony was sixteen at M.I.T. he had gotten bored and decided to give the security system at S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ a go and halfway succeeded before being interrupted, but if that had been an actual problem he figured they would’ve slammed him for it back then. Besides, what did Thor Odinson have to do with a hacking scandal? Maybe it had to do with Howard. Typical. The sins of the father apparently trickle down to the son. In all honesty, Tony liked the superheroes. And if they didn’t believe him, he had a rather lengthy collection of Captain America collectables in his closet. Surely they couldn’t want Tony because of his brains; they had people like Reed Richards and Stephen Strange and Bruce Banner for crying out loud. Tony was a child compared to them.

Looking up at Thor, Tony swallowed the knot in his throat and mentally mustered up a question for him. There were plenty to chose from really; why was he casually kidnapped by two weird men in sharp suits, or what was the God of Thunder doing escorting a lowly human to the world’s most secretive agency known to man, or why hadn’t anyone just made an appointment if they wanted to talk to him? Everything had to be dramatics when it was getting the attention of Tony Stark. Really, just a phone call would do. As Tony opened his mouth to ask one of the many abundant questions, Thor beat him to the punch and interjected with a small explanation.

“We are taking you to S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters,” he stated officially. As if it weren’t painfully obvious by now. “Our Director wants to ask a favor of you.”

“Me?” Tony said. “The hell does your boss man want with me?”

“A favor,” repeated Thor simply. He glanced over at the young man; such a small mortal, so fragile, yet full of such potential. “Do not fear, he means no ill will.”

Tony nodded, unsure of whether or not he wanted to believe Thor but saw no other choice in the matter. They were headed towards the headquarters; his cooperation would be given regardless. He tried to relax and settle against the leather seats, at least enjoy the ride to a part of the city he tried to avoid but idolized from a far. A lot of superheroes lived near S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ, if mostly due to the fact they hired them, and Tony didn’t feel welcomed there. Not after his father had said so many crude things about them. He hoped no one would notice him when they exited the car, but who was he kidding? His face was plastered on magazine covers and tabloids, the news and daily talk shows. Of course people would recognize him. It didn’t matter though, as soon as the car pulled up to the curb and halted to a stop the two agents from before left their front seats and took to the back, gently manhandling Tony through the front doors before anyone could get a good look. Thor towered behind him like a brick wall, looming but not menacingly so. More like a backup plan just in case Tony would try something. Which was stupid of them to think. As if he could.

“I can walk without you two holding me, you know,” Tony snapped at the agents, snatching his forearms back.

“They fear you’ll run,” Thor explained from behind, a small grin on his face. He turned to the agents then. “Release him, I will take him from here.”

The agents warily unhanded Tony, but kept their eyes on him until they reached the elevators and the two steel doors slid shut between them. Tony managed to flip them off before they were completely out of sight. He may have been a fan of superheroes, but S.H.I.E.L.D. was another manner. They were secret, so secret that their secrets had secrets and he didn’t particularly want any part of that. People like that were usually pretty slippery. His dad was like that.

“Anthony Stark – ”

“Tony,” the young man interrupted, peering up at the godlike man.

“Tony Stark,” Thor corrected. “I realize this must be very sudden for you.”

“Yeah, kind of,” he said, fidgeting as the elevator kept going up and up and up. “My dad’s not exactly on your boss’s biggest fan list.”

“But you are not like your father before you.”

Thor held a serious tone in his voice, one that told Tony that he needed to tread lightly with the big wigs. He needed to make sure everyone, the Director included, knew that no, Tony Stark was in fact quite different from the late Howard Stark. He’d have no problem with that.

“Sometimes the sins of the father trickle down to the sons, you know.”

Thor nodded, pursing his lips as if in thought as he stared up at the changing numbers. When the elevator dinged, his large hand shot out and pressed the button that said Close to keep the doors from opening and towered over Tony. They were barely evenly matched in height and Tony lacked in the broadness department.

“I believe you are the right man for the job, Tony Stark,” he said in a low, almost threatening voice. “Not many do. Please try to take this seriously. A lot… is at stake.”

Tony nodded, what else could he do? He didn’t even know why he was here, only that this Thunder God believed in him with some misplaced faith and that beyond those metal doors the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. was waiting for him. So he nodded vigorously until Thor put on his goofy grin again and let the doors do their job. They exited quietly and made their way down the blandest hallway Tony had ever seen. White walls with white doors with platinum plated doorknobs and hinges with no windows whatsoever and a small silver plaque that read two letters and four digits to identify the room. It all seemed very high tech and at the same time very dull. Their footsteps echoed loudly in the empty corridor and his sneakers squeaked against the tile when they stopped in front of a door that had no cryptic identification but read DIRECTOR FURY in capital bold letters. Thor opened the door, allowing Tony to go first, and the youth hesitantly stepped inside.

At the beginning of this fiasco, Tony thought he was in deep shit after trying to hack S.H.I.E.L.D.’s security system back at M.I.T. but was led to suspect something bigger. Then Thor informed him that the big boss man wanted to talk with him, and Tony had expected only the big boss man. Inside what looked to be more of a conference room than an office was indeed the head honcho, surrounded by none other than incredibly famous faces of numerous superheroes Tony had secretly grown up falling in love with. The Scarlet Witch and her brother Quicksilver, Captain America – holy shit it was the Captain America – and Bruce Banner. Thor made up the last of the little posse and came up behind Tony, patting him on the shoulder hard enough that he had to take a step forward to keep from falling over.

“Sit,” Director Fury offered, gesturing to the only empty chair in the room. It was between Thor and Bruce Banner and Tony took it. “It’s a real pleasure to meet the son of Howard Stark.”

“Can we not,” Tony blurted out, voice a little shaky. Sitting in with Fury was one thing, sitting in with five superheroes was a totally different other thing. “Can we just… you know, skip the pleasantries because I’m sure the son of the man who wanted to single-handedly destroy you and the superheroes is hardly a pleasure to see.”

Fury’s one eye widened a bit, perhaps taken back by the rough introduction, but smiled regardless as he straightened himself up in his chair. Tony already didn’t like him.

“Of course. Though I assure you, you aren’t that much a sight for sore eyes. But down to business,” he said, folding his hands on the table. “Are you familiar with the way things are done around here?”

Tony nodded, pausing to swallow for a moment before verbalizing. “You hire and regulate the lives of superheroes at different stations around the world. You allow them to live their lives the way they see fit, be it in an orderly fashion – leaves room for error in my opinion – and it doesn’t matter whether or not they accepted your job deal. You put them into groups, fight off rogue super powered beings and keep us regular boring people safe for the good of humanity or whatever your catch is.”

Fury nodded, pleased with what he heard. “Do you know what happens when they go off the map?”

Tony didn’t answer right away. He busied himself with the other faces in the room. Most everyone, with the exception of The Scarlet Witch and Thor, held sturdy poker faces. Thor kept forcing that silly grin of his, although close lipped now, and the sorceress looked ready to spill something she wasn’t suppose to.

“That’s kind of a loaded question,” he said finally, putting his attention back to Fury. “Most of the time it’s to get their villain act together, but maybe some of them are ashamed of their powers, scared, even, of what they can do. I’m sure it was pretty risky when my dad was preaching his bullshit about killing them off... I dunno, could also be they don’t like you watching their every move.”

“That’s necessary,” Fury said, a warning tone in his voice. He narrowed his eye at Tony, reading him, or at least trying to, before leaning back a fraction in his chair. “But we didn’t come to talk about that specifically.”

“Then can we maybe get to the point?” Tony pressed.

Fury nodded. “A small group of young super-powered beings have gone off the map after their applications were rejected.”

Tony blinked slowly. “Rejected? You rejected a group of superheroes?”

“Their group was questionable – two unstable magicians, a rumored Skrull, and a speedster who they broke out of a juvenile detention facility.”

The room sat quietly for a moment, almost awkwardly so. Tony narrowed his eyes at Fury from opposite ends of the table. He tried to fit the pieces together, but nothing made sense, him sitting here didn’t make sense. He had nothing to do with this supposedly rowdy group of rejected super-kids – and that in itself sounded dangerously stupid – but he was sure he wouldn’t like where the conversation led.

“We have reason to believe that they are operating on their own accord now, somewhere remote, but we aren’t sure.”

“You aren’t sure?” Tony lifted an eyebrow.

“We can’t find them,” Fury said, pressing his lips into a thin line. He didn’t seem too pleased with the results, but he straightened his expression into a passive one before Tony could figure out why. “This is where you come in. Our intelligent team has narrowed the group’s activities to a comic book store off the edge of town. Apparently they’re in need of one more recruit before they lift off the ground. They have a trusted friend there – human – who works at the counter during the weekends. If anyone wants to get a hold of this renegade team, you talk to him. We would book him for questioning, but we’ve had a few complaints about that just pushing the kids further from our reach.”

“You want me to apply for their empty spot?” The director nodded. “Are you out of your fucking mind? They could kill me! And you’re telling me Scarlet Witch here can’t cast a simple locater spell to find four people?”

“She has, and she can’t find them because she taught one of them how to completely disappear off the map,” Fury stated accusingly, sparing a glance towards Scarlet Witch.

Silence descended again, this time with obvious awkwardness. Tony stared at The Scarlet Witch, who fidgeted and looked plenty guilty of more than just teaching a routine spell.

“Why do I get the feeling you aren’t telling me the entire story?”

Fury opened his mouth, most likely to lie and say he was, but The Scarlet Witch beat him to it. “Two of them are my sons. William and Thomas Maximoff; the sorcerer and the speedster. And Loki, the other sorcerer, is Thor’s brother.”

At that, Thor finally lost the friendly expression he’d been sporting the entire meeting and looked down at the table, almost ashamedly.

“Wanda – ” Fury started.

“We don’t want any harm to come to them, honest. But they’re incredibly resourceful, Loki especially,” she gave Thor a sideways glance. “I taught William the spell, yes, but they’ve been off my radar for weeks now. That’s far too long for him to be concentrating on the spell. Thor informed me Loki was rather good at inscribing runes just a few days ago, which means he put the spell into a permanent cycle. That’s why we can’t find them.”

“Okay, so why send in the human guinea pig with the unpopular father? Why not catch them in the act and bring them home, no harm done?”

“Because,” Thor interjected. “Harm would be done. They did this out of spite and anger, and we… did not exactly encourage their decisions either. They are as angry with us as they are at S.H.I.E.L.D. and dragging them home kicking and screaming would cause them to act out more.”

“So I’m gonna bring them home, is that it?” Tony tried to keep his voice even, to keep the slight panic from seeping in.

“We want you to watch over them,” Scarlet Witch corrected. “We could do as you say, find them forcibly and bring them home by the ear, but what purpose would that serve? They’re young, they want to prove themselves, and as young people go they’re usually reckless about it. We want you, an unlikely candidate, to convince them you’re sincere, join them, and – ”

“Report it all back to us,” Fury finished.

Tony settled back in his seat, tapping his fingers on the table. He swallowed a sizable knot in his throat, the nervousness creeping up on him. “And why would they even consider me? Despite my last name, I’m not exactly superhero material.”

“You’ve got tech,” Fury said pointedly. “We know you do. Use it to your advantage.”

The very stench of this plan smelled to high heaven and Tony didn’t like it. He was eighteen and in three years would take up Stark Industries – a company best known for their weaponry against superheroes – who had the intelligence just below S.H.I.E.L.D.’s brightest but the responsibility of a sixteen-year-old. It didn’t add up and Tony hated not having all the variables.

“Think about it,” Fury broke the silence. “I’ll contact you tomorrow.”

That certainly wasn’t a lot of time to think on something like this, but it was better than answering now. Without a word, Tony nodded and began getting out of his chair, pleasantries be damned, and headed for the door. Someone else got up and their footsteps followed his. Judging by the weight, he guessed it was Thor. They were as silent leaving as they had been arriving, and not until the elevator doors shut did Thor speak.

“I would implore you to think positively on this,” he said, fidgeting in place.

“You’re encouraging me to lie to a bunch of super-powered kids my age so you guys don’t look like the bad guys,” Tony said, rolling his eyes up at Thor. “I’m not stupid.”

“Not lie,” Thor corrected. “Loki can smell a lie as if it were fragrance. Just… be convincing. Haven’t you ever thought about working with superheroes?”

Once, when he was little and his mother humored him. She secretly bought him Captain America pajamas and let him run around the house, jumping on furniture and climbing on counters. He threw pillows pretending they were shields and saved his proto-type robots from the garbage dump his father threatened about when he didn’t put them back in his room. Then Tony figured out what exactly Stark Industries produced and he stopped. It didn’t keep him out of the comic book stores or watching the promotional news shows about S.H.I.E.L.D.’s newest inductee. He just stopped the childish dream of actually becoming one, it just wasn’t plausible at the time. But with his father six feet under and three years of nothing to do career-wise, Fury’s proposal touched that inner child, sparking interest once more.

They stopped in front of the entrance doors, a black car waiting just outside to take Tony home. He turned around to take one last look at the lobby, betting he would never see the inside of S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ again. It held an otherworldly feel to it, despite it looking like any other lobby. Perhaps it was the thought that behind these walls held Earth’s mightiest heroes, the strongest, bravest, most intellectual beings ever to be born, be it by accident or birthright. His childish dreams took refuge here, pulled his interest forward. Maybe he couldn’t hold a daring conversation with Captain Marvel or be Captain America’s sidekick, but Fury was offering him a chance to work with a different team of people. To Fury it was only recon, and to The Scarlet Witch and Thor just a glorified babysitter pulled out of left field, but to Tony this could be his chance to step out of his boring lifestyle.

“Tell Fury I’ll do it,” Tony said.

Thor gave him a surprised, but genuinely satisfied smile. “You will?”

“Yeah,” he answered confidently. “I will.”


	2. left field

Loki woke up with an abominable feeling sitting in the pit of his stomach at around half past noon, and it kept him in bed until one. He stared at the ceiling, hair askew across the white pillow, limbs sprawled along the mattress with the sheets kicked down to his calves. Those sorts of days meant one of two things. One, it was Tommy’s turn to cook last night, or two, today wasn’t going to be a good day. The other twin had cooked last night, which meant the other thing. Loki hated the other thing. The clock blinked one o’ two when Loki gracefully rolled out of bed and headed out of his room. On his way to the bathroom, he could hear the television in the living room and two voices. The news was on, talking about how Black Widow and her secret operative team diffused another bomb from Dr. Doom. The fifth one this week and it was only Wednesday. Angry, perhaps, that S.H.I.E.L.D. had raided his not-so secret headquarters last month. Loki splashed water across his face, the running water in the sink drowning out the sound in the living room. Three weeks, two days and it was a wonder S.H.I.E.L.D. hadn’t come crashing in on their own sorry excuse for a secret hideout. With Billy’s spell and Loki’s runes, the place was theoretically foolproof, but it didn’t stop someone from recognizing them if they went out. Not that they were famous; the only one who had that privilege was maybe Tommy after he broke out of the detention facility. Otherwise they just looked like a bunch of ordinary kids. Sighing, Loki hung his head in the sink, carding his fingers roughly through his hair. Thor was going to kill him when they found him. He grinned wickedly at his reflection in the mirror.

It had been Billy’s idea to send S.H.I.E.L.D. an application about their hastily formed group of superheroes, even after Loki had brought reality crashing down on him. William Kaplan, the unstable sorcerer who could hardly fly straight on a good day, his twin brother Thomas Shepard, a juvenile delinquent who could run at the speed of sound, Theodore Altman, a half-Skrull half-Kree hybrid and also Billy’s boyfriend, and Loki, or kid Loki depending on who one talked to, the reincarnated trickster God who was still about as trusted as a kumquat. Yeah, S.H.I.E.L.D. denied their party quicker than they could think. It had been Loki’s idea to start up a rogue group, and Tommy’s idea to wait for a fifth member quoting from some unknown source that all good superhero squads start off in groups of five. This led them to their current situation; very quietly tiptoeing around the city in search of one desperate soul to join their team. The friend at the comic book shop had been Teddy’s from his old high school, he could shape shift and talk with him about their deal without being conspicuous.

Loki spent a lot of time on Midgard, which tickled Thor to no end. He used to hate the people of Earth, so it was said, but Loki didn’t entirely have a choice choosing where to spend his time. Whether his hatred carried over to his new soul or not, Midgard was much preferred over Asgard. Honestly, Loki had to wonder why Thor even bothered bringing him back from his reincarnated life to his true home in Asgard – no one else seemed to agree that that had been a good idea. Still the trickster, still the chaos god, still the murderer; it grated on a person with no knowledge of it all. Loki took to Midgardian things rather well though. People didn’t seem to recognize him as anything but an Asgardian, a definite advantage. It was lonely, though, with his “real” home in a complete uproar, mortals too busy to entertain him, and Thor. Thor tried, he did, and Loki could see it, feel it. He wanted to mold Loki into the Loki he could’ve been had everything that had happened in the past happened differently. Unfortunately, he split his time between Asgard and his business with S.H.I.E.L.D. too often enough, but Loki took it to heart.

So when Loki found Billy Kaplan being bullied outside his high school, it only felt natural to do the exact opposite of what Thor said. His magic may have dulled since his reincarnation, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t pull off a simple, tricky spell or two. His would-be cruel trick against the aggressor became an accidental grace. Saving Billy escalated into being good acquaintances with Billy, befriending him, getting to know him. He confided in Loki that he, too, had magic, that he was the Scarlet Witch’s son – in a way, an all-too complicated way after he was done explaining to Loki. He had a brother too, a troublesome brat who landed himself in the local Juvenile Detention Facility. Time passed, and Loki met the boyfriend – Teddy Altman – who intrigued the Asgardian to no end. A hybrid breed of two warring species, Loki could empathize.

Thor indulged Loki’s friendships, they were good people. As teenagers do, however, mischief was always on the horizon, and even more so with Loki leading the team. But it wasn’t anything like planning to destroy the world, or cursing objects around the city into frozen dairy treats. Their biggest bout of trouble had been attending a protest against Stark Industries’ newest invention. A serum, a “cure” they were calling it, to depower a super-being. An overzealous guard shot one into the crowd after the protest had gotten too rowdy, and the outcome had not been pretty. They hadn’t gone to any more protests since.

When Billy sprouted the idea about forming their own band of heroes, Loki laughed. It didn’t matter that their parental guardians were the Mighty Thor and the Scarlet Witch. S.H.I.E.L.D. would take one look at the file, at any part of it, and reject them faster than Fury could blink. And it had been, but by Thor and Wanda instead.

“You always tell me to be good,” Loki muttered to his reflection, scowling at the memory. “And I will, even if you stand in my way, brother.”

Breaking out Tommy Shepherd had been their last stand against their guardians. It had been messy, Tommy a wreck, but as soon as they found traction they quickly found themselves at an abandoned lot on the edge of town. With Billy’s magic and Loki’s ruins, the place was invisible to S.H.I.E.L.D. and more importantly their parents, not to mention luxurious. Being able to warp reality had its perks.

Now they played the waiting game, but Loki was getting impatient. No doubt the others were too, they’d yet to have anyone asking to join their renegade team. If they didn’t start doing something soon, Thor and the others would start to think they weren’t serious at all, that this was some kind of wayward tantrum. It wasn’t, they were serious, and they’d prove it beyond a doubt that they were ready for this.

Although at the moment, Tommy was missing and the other two were making out on the couch, the news completely forgotten about, and Loki was in the mood for a milkshake.

“How many times have I asked you not to do that on the couch?” Loki said, appearing above the couch before plopping down next to them.

Both of them jolted upright, Teddy clamoring off Billy, who spoke up with, “How many times have we asked you not to just… you know, appear out of no where? You don’t see me using my magic to sneak up on you.”

Loki made a face but didn’t answer, instead focusing on the television as the other two situated themselves. They were talking about the Stark family now, and Gods be damned couldn’t they talk about something else? Two months ago Howard and Maria Stark had died in a car accident, and honestly it was good riddance. Stark Industries needed to be wiped off the map and it was an absolute miracle – or tragedy – that no villain had terrorized it yet. The woman on the news switched topics from the death to their still breathing son, Anthony Edward Stark. No negative news had been associated with him, save a few too crazy parties and some drunken incidents out in bars. Otherwise, superheroes had no other reason to hate him besides his last name. In three years, it was said he’d take up the company, and then, thought Loki, he’d be hated. For now he was just some dumb kid, kind of like them.

“How are the runes holding up?” Billy asked, looking around Teddy to peer at Loki.

He didn’t answer right away, just stared at the television, watched the news replay videos of Tony Stark stumbling out of a club with sunglasses on and paparazzi flooding him until he was inside the sanctity of his vehicle, another video of him exiting his New York mansion this time seemingly sober, and another as the paparazzi tagged him at his parents funeral. He didn’t look very broken up about it as he slipped into his limousine. Loki narrowed his eyes at the screen.

“Loki?” Billy repeated.

“I heard you. As long as no one touches them, the seal should hold,” Loki answered, ripping his attention away from the television. “It’s quiet, where’s Tommy?”

“Out,” Teddy answered, digging around the couch for the remote. “Don’t know for what, he just rushed out.”

Loki hummed, leaning back on the couch cushions. “I want a milkshake.”

The front door burst open and practically off its hinges, and if it hadn’t been for the ridiculous chattering that followed through, the boys might have thought it were one of their relatives coming to bring them home by the ear.

“ _Youguys!_ ” Tommy flitted in, front door pathetically shutting behind him. He rushed into the living room, stopping in front of the television. A few stray papers and empty cups blew over and the rickety coffee table almost toppled over. “You guys, you’ll never believe who I saw at the comic shop today!”

“What were you doing out that far?” Loki interrupted, displeased.

“Just going for a run, butguyslisten – ”

“Tommy, we can’t do that!” Billy scolded. “We’ll get noticed.”

“If you guys would shut up for like a minute, oh my God. No one saw me because everyone was busy fawning over Tony Stark!” Tommy fidgeted from one foot to the other. “Reporters were swarming everywhere and I couldn’t help but take a peek in so I did and man am I glad I did becauseTonyStarkwasatthecounterand – ”

“Tommy, breath!” Teddy teased. “Deep breaths, in and out, circulate the oxygen.”

“Are you even listening?” Tommy bounced. “Tony. Stark. The actual dude with the mansion and money and – ”

“The weapons manufacturing company.” Loki added dully.

“He was talking to your friend, your inside guy who’s helping us recruit another hero!” The speedster pointed to Teddy, leaning over to shake his shoulders. “You thinkin’ what I’m thinkin’?”

“No way,” Billy gaped, eyes wide and a grin beginning to spread across his face. “ _No way_.”

“T-T-Tommy, quit sh-shaking m-me,” Teddy managed, and the youth stopped only to flit his way to Loki’s side. “And why couldn’t he have just been asking Blake about, I dunno, this month’s issues?”

“Ask him about it this weekend when you go see him!” Tommy grinned, looking to Loki. “How awesome would it be if Tony Stark was on our team, huh?”

“Deplorable, to put it kindly.”

“Exact – what? Oh, c’mon Loki, don’t get all uptight and righteous on us now!” Tommy whined, flopping down between the two sorcerers.

“You expect me to believe that  _Tony Stark_ , the son of a man who spent his entire life attempting to eradicate our kind, wants to join a rejected, renegade team of teenage superheroes?”

“It is a little suspicious that he’d go to a comic shop with, you know, his family history being what it is,” Billy gestured. “And he didn’t go incognito, which meant he was trying to grab attention.”

“We don’t  _need_  attention,” Loki emphasized. “And we definitely do not need  _that_  kind of attention.”

“I say we put it to a vote!” Tommy perked up. “All in favor of Teddy checking things out tomorrow?”

“This is not a democracy…”

“What’s the harm in asking Blake about it Saturday?” Teddy suggested with a shrug.

The team stayed quiet, all looking to Loki, who had his green eyes glued to the ceiling and a stomach that gurgled with the want for food. Diner food, to be specific. He’d taken quite a liking to it in this new body.

“I will go with you,” Loki said, peering over in the corner of his eye to look at Teddy. Tommy and Billy quietly celebrated with a high five and a simultaneous ‘yes’. “That does not mean we’ll actually take this into consideration. I’m merely curious. And cautious.”

But Billy and Tommy didn’t seem to hear him, or care. The twins didn’t agree on things often, and when they did it usually meant the other thing. Loki hated the other thing.

\- - -

“Hey Blake!” Teddy greeted as he walked in through the front door of the comic book shop. He waved a small hand on a skinny arm connected to a thin, all-limbs body. Scrawny was actually what Teddy looked like, and only when he’d figured out how to shapeshift had he gone and given himself a different look, a bigger look. His hair was a little shorter, paler, and swept back with just a little gel. He’d borrowed Billy’s clothes to wear.

On Teddy’s heels came a woman, just half a head shorter than him. She had wavy, thick hair trailing down a little ways past her shoulders, equally thick black lipstick and matching nail polish that shown green in the light. Her heels clicked against the linoleum floor as she followed Teddy in.

Blake waved at Teddy, recognizing him in an instant, but looked a little less confident at the woman behind him. “Afternoon you two,” he greeted. “Saved you and Bee this week’s Wednesday issues.”

“We aren’t here for that,” Loki spoke, voice high pitched and smooth. Blake swallowed hard. Loki lowered his voice, hair flowing over his slender shoulder as he leaned across the counter. “We heard Tony Stark dropped by the other day.”

“Oh.” Blake nodded. “Yeah, back here.”

The male beckoned with a small gesture of his hand and turned away from Teddy and his female counterpart. They followed, walking around and behind the register. The three of them entered the back storeroom, and Blake shut the door before speaking up again.

“Tony Stark came around yesterday, yeah.” He started. “Asking about you guys. Not by name! But… he asked about the team. The one that’s ‘off S.H.I.E.L.D.’s radar’ as he put it. He gave me this.”

Blake fumbled around his pants for the object, and out of his back pocket he pulled out a small business card. It was thick and expensive looking, very rich guy oriented. The store clerk offered it to them and Loki snatched it away. He flipped it around several times, ran his fingers over the slightly textured off-white card. Just a plain piece of paper, really, with Tony’s full name written in all caps, thin but fancy text that was easy to read and in black ink. Underneath read the name of an uppity apartment complex in the city, the address underneath that, and a floor and room number below that. Loki narrowed his eyes at the card, flipping it over again one more time for good measure.

“He wanted me to give it to you.”

“Obviously,” Loki snapped, voice back to its original octave. He didn’t like this. It seemed weird and out of place and Loki hated that he couldn’t specifically figure out  _why_  this all felt like it did. Handing the card over to Teddy, the he asked, “Did he say anything else?”

“Only that he was serious about the whole thing, that it wasn’t a joke,” Blake shrugged.

Loki sneered, folding his arms over his endowed chest, turning to Teddy. “What do you think?”

“That this is either a poor excuse for a clever trap or he’s actually serious about joining us,” he handed the business card back to Loki. “There’s a lot of unanswered questions, that’s for sure. But… I mean, if he is serious, it’d be pretty cool to have him on our team.”

The sheepish smile Teddy was unsuccessfully hiding from Loki made him roll his eyes. He looked down at the card again, rubbed a thumb over the indented font that read the boy’s name. Wednesday, Loki had seen him on the television, a recount of the Stark family funeral. He narrowed his eyes at the address printed on the card.

“Go home, Teddy. Tell the others I’ll be looking into this.”

Something against his better judgment told Loki not to look into it, but then he asked himself where his sense of adventure was as he peeped through the twenty-first floor window of a private apartment. The wind howled around him, smacking his wayward hair every which way as he watched Anthony Edward Stark watch The Tonight Show for the third night in a row. He swayed his feet over the sill, both hands folded in his lap as he leaned against the nearly floor to ceiling window, head turned so he could watch Jay Leno interview S.H.I.E.L.D.’s newest recruit. That could’ve been them, and it still very well could be if they didn’t muck this up. As the show went on, Tony sucked on a straw leading into a halfway finished tall glass of ice cream. Loki licked his lips, itching for one himself. So far, he wasn’t suspicious in the least. Every morning he’d wake up at about noon, patter around the bathroom for about half an hour, and go to the kitchen for another half hour to make a sad excuse for breakfast and two milkshakes. By three o’ clock, one would already be devoured while the other sat in the refrigerator. During the day, he would sit around his apartment, perhaps waiting for the team to show up. He’d dot on his phone, and flip through the television channels only to watch a full three seconds of each before turning to the next. Loki’s personal favorite was when Tony would flip on his stereo and do the most awkwardly embarrassing dancing throughout the entire apartment, jumping on furniture and air-instrumenting various parts. Tonight, Jay Leno wasn’t holding his attention and without warning he pushed himself off the couch to walk by the windows. Tony wouldn’t see him, Loki made it so all he would see was the New York skyline. He stopped a window away from where Loki perched himself, milkshake forgotten as he looked disgruntledly at the city. How long would he wait, Loki wondered, for a representative to arrive and speak with him about maybe joining the team? Someone like Tony Stark had all the time in the world. Loki narrowed his eyes at him, making a small noise in his throat.

“Wherever is my sense of adventure indeed,” he said aloud and to himself, he thought, right here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, concerns, constructive criticism, cookies - you may leave them all below!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: February 17


	3. first impressions

Tony Stark did not fidget. Occasionally he’d uncross his legs and stretch them out before crossing them over again, this time left leg over right leg. His hands were busy with the latest Stark Phone, tapping away quietly so that his fingers didn’t chatter on the wood desk beside him. Music played from the other room,  _Enter Sandman_ , and he couldn’t not tap his feet to it with its heavy beat thumping through the bass. His shoulders shifted, his hips scooted against the fabric, his tongue clicked against his teeth, but Tony Stark did not fidget.

It had been about a week since he’d gone to the comic shop to talk to the clerk, a week of living in his high-rise apartment, and Tony would be a liar and a half if he said he wasn’t nervous. After agreeing to this inane plan, Thor and the Scarlet Witch went into great detail about the kids. Billy sounded like a good kid, regular old teenager going through a little bit of a rebellious phase that had been no doubt spurred on by Loki. He shared his powers with his mom, making him partially a mutant, with mage-like abilities to boot. There was a lot of power in him, the Scarlet Witch warned, and not a lot of training; his control wasn’t the best. Teddy didn’t sound too out of the ordinary either, save his hybrid background and a little shape shifting issue he’d encountered while in high school. An identity problem for a while, Teddy almost landed himself in Juvie with Billy’s brother after publicly impersonating several well-known superheroes. That stopped after meeting Billy, grappling him from the bad crowd he’d gotten himself caught up in. Tommy had problems with foster parents before meeting Wanda and Billy. Not long after their reunion, however, did he pull a stunt that landed him in a state Juvenile Detention Facility built specifically to house super-powered beings. Wanda had still been in the middle of trying to get him out in a legal manner before the boys broke him out and booked. Thor’s brother, on the other hand, worried him. Mythology be damned, there was no better source of information about the actual Norse gods than Thor himself. There had been a lot of “do not do this” and “do not do that” in the conversation, but equal amounts of positivity. Tony couldn’t help but think Thor was a biased party when it came to talking about Loki. Reincarnate or not, Tony wasn’t about to underestimate a chaos god.

The knock at the door had Tony fumbling with his phone so that it didn’t fall and shatter to the ground because he definitely had  _not_  been fidgeting. He muted the music with said phone, pressing a simple button before setting it on the table, next to two tall glasses of milkshakes – Thor’s idea. He was getting tired of drinking them when another day passed with no notice. Tony stood in front of the door, straightening out his vest with his clammy hands. He’d dressed somewhere between semi-casual and semi-formal, not wanting to come off too laid back but not entirely business-esque. The knock came again, a calm collected sound. Right, the door.

A woman stood in front of him, and no one had told him about a woman. Teddy could shapeshift, but was this him? Her? She had black hair, about shoulder length, a nice wave throughout that curled at the ends in large chunks that framed her angular face well enough, and dull green eyes behind a pair of thin-rimmed glasses. She pushed them up the bridge of her nose with her middle finger, smiling just at eye level with Tony. Her lipstick shone green against the thick black in the light.

“Mr. Stark?” She inquired politely.

“Please, call me Tony,” he corrected. “And you are? Besides beautiful.”

The woman’s smile widened. “From the Bugle.”

Tony blinked, taking in the answer before his shoulders slumped a little. “I don’t have time for reporters right now. No matter how attractive.”

“Oh, it’ll only take but a moment Mr. Stark,” she pressed, rocking forward on her heels. “A few questions and then I’ll be off, you have my word.”

Absently, Tony glanced at his watch. He had time, not that he thought this plan of his and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s was actually going to work. He opened the door a little wider, and stepped away to let her in. “Only a few questions. And it’s Tony.”

“You have my thanks, Mr. Stark,” she gave him a cheeky grin as she entered, glancing around the living room area. It wasn’t bland, but it wasn’t as outrageous as one would think the glamorous Mr. Stark would live. “Is this your home?”

“Is that a question for your column?” He asked, walking over to the couches.

“No, just a question of mere curiosity,” she answered, heels clacking against the wood floors as she followed Tony.

“This is kind of my getaway,” Tony said, sinking into one of the seat cushions. “You’re probably aware that the mansion is my home, but that’s swamped full of reporters. Not many reporters know about my apartment though.”

The woman crossed her fingers. “I won’t tell a soul, Mr. Stark.”

“Tony. Take a seat,” he patted the empty space next to him. “Make yourself comfortable.”

She did, seating herself next to him with her legs crossed. From her jacket pocket, she took out a recording device, clicked it on, and held it between them. “I won’t waste any more of your time, so down to business shall we? I’d like to inquire about the next three years – it’s been said you’ll take up your father’s company in time, but what about the time in between? What do you plan to do?”

“Fool around,” Tony answered immediately, as if he’d been asked such a thing before. “Be a crazy kid up until the time I can’t.”

“Is that so?” She tilted her head to one side, pursing her lips. “And when you do take up the company, what then?”

“I haven’t discussed that with the current owners of Stark Industries yet, so I can’t really answer that,” he gave another autopilot answer.

The journalist made a dissatisfied expression. “Are you going to continue answering me with the same thing you tell everyone else?”

Tony shrugged. “I don’t have a reason to tell you any differently. I don’t know why you people from the Bugle waste your time. And mine.”

“How about a bit of variety, to spice things up?” She suggested, forcing a smile. It didn’t sit correctly, and both she and Tony knew it. “Just one honest answer will do, Mr. Stark.”

“How about you ask me a question no one’s asked before, and I’ll give you your honest answer,” Tony countered, leaning back. It gave the woman a view of the desk beside them, the one housing the Stark Phone and the two milkshakes.

“Milkshakes?” The woman said aloud before she could stop herself. She pressed her lips into a thin line.

“I’m expecting company, so if you could, you know,” Tony waved his hand in a “hurry up” sort of motion.

“Yes, of course,” she smiled, chuckling under her breath. “Has anyone asked your opinion on superheroes? More specifically, rather, do you share you father’s feelings about them?”

“In order; yes and no.”

“So will you be shutting down the portion of Stark Industries that creates weapons to destroy them?”

“I haven’t discussed that with the current owners of Stark Industries yet, so – ”

“Mr. Stark,” the journalist said pointedly. The grip around her recording device tightened, the plastic encasement whining quietly. “Yes or no.”

“Do you really care how I answer that question?” Tony snapped. “If I say yes, you’ll make a big hullabaloo out of it when you print your story, and if I say no, you’ll make a big hullabaloo out of it when you print your story. Either way, it’ll be news fodder and people can read about something other than my parents’ death. So really, print whatever the hell you want.”

“The answer  _does_  matter, Mr. Stark,” she ground out. “It matters a lot. The people need to know whether or not they will have another  _tyrant_  running amok. Superheroes, and the allies of said superheroes, need to know. Your father’s work has caused them  _grief_  beyond comparison, not to mention his work has caught the eyes of villains. I heard Dr. Doom is trying to recreate Howard’s work so he can use it against superheroes, to depower them. Your father,  _Mr. Stark_ , was a deplorable, venomous ingrate and I believe your answer  _matters_.”

Tony sat quietly for a moment, surprise hidden behind a mask of indifference. He looked at the journalist, really looked at her, giving her words thought before speaking. “So, what you’re asking is will I, in three years, grow up to be a giant douchebag?”

“If you wish to word it so, yes.”

“Off the record?” He asked, looking down at the recorder. When she clicked it off and set it down in her lap, he answered her. “No. The first thing I’m doing when I’m president is defunding that department.”

The woman offered him a small, but genuine smile. “Thank you, Mr. Stark.”

“No problem,” Tony said, clapping his hands together once. “So can I ask you something sweet cheeks?”

Her lips twitched at the nickname, but she nodded regardless.

“Am I passing your test?” He asked, offering her a shit-eating grin.

“What?”

“I didn’t know you could shapeshift too, so it took me a while to get some traction,” Tony explained. “But a few things gave you away, if I can critique you for a moment. One, you don’t talk like a reporter – you’re slower, like you think before you speak, and it’s meticulous. Two, you get upset, like really upset when I don’t answer you the way you want, most reporters brush it off, next question. But what really gave you away was your recorder. No one turns off their recorder, not unless you’ve got a spare hiding around. So, Loki, am I passing your test?”

The woman fidgeted with her device for a moment, face blank and eyes wide before the façade crumbled and Tony was met with a sharp grin that didn’t fit her pretty face at all.

“You aren’t as stupid as I imagined,” Loki chuckled, removing himself from the couch. As he stood, the glamour faded in a glimmer of green and gold, leaving behind the faux journalist from the Bugle. The hair receded up to just below his ears, a few loose chunks falling into his eyes. Loki carded it back, one hand on his hip as he inspected the place quietly. “Are those for me?”

“Those what?”

“The milkshakes.” Loki turned his head to look at Tony. “Does my sweet tooth for Midgardian desserts proceed me?”

“I did a bit of homework, yeah,” Tony shrugged. He leaned over to grab a glass, handing it to the other, straw and all. “Vanilla chocolate swirl, the other is strawberry cream.”

Loki snatched the vanilla chocolate mix from Tony’s grasp, never taking his eyes off of him, ever suspicious. “Did you think you could bribe me with ice cream?”

“I didn’t think it could hurt,” Tony shrugged again. Slowly, Loki sipped at the cold dessert through the straw, eyes still drawn to Tony. “Is it working?”

“No,” Loki answered around the straw. But silence followed and settled, only slightly uneasy, while he sucked the milkshake up in record time. Loki paced the living room, only peeking into the others through hallways and around doorframes. Tony let him, sitting awkwardly on the couch, catching a glimpse of the leather-clad lad whenever he came around within eyesight. When Loki finally withdrew his lips from the straw, milkshake almost finished, he spoke up. “How did you know I was not the other shapeshifter?”

“You and Thor talk kinda similarly.”

“You’ve spoken with Thor?” Loki quirked an eyebrow in Tony’s direction, mouth hovering over the straw again. He held a dangerous look in his eyes.

“No,” Tony snorted. “I’ve heard him speak on T.V. occasionally. You think anyone from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s gonna wanna speak with me?”

Loki shrugged, making a semi-satisfied face. He sucked on the straw, not stopping until it gurgled with more air than ice cream. “So why, pray tell, did you think our little group would want to speak to you?”

It was Tony’s turn to shrug. “I didn’t. But here you are anyway.”

“How did you find out about us?” Loki asked, setting the empty glass on the side table. “How much do you know?”

Tony had rehearsed his story enough to think it to be believable enough, but not so rehearsed that it sounded so when he spoke it aloud. He’d made sure that when he lied, he had truth to back it up, to cover his tracks so Loki wouldn’t find the rips and tears.

“I hacked into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s database once when I was at M.I.T.,” he started. “They never called me out on it and the private server stayed open. I peek in from time to time to see what’s up, new recruits and all that jazz. They also have a habit of keeping records of applications, accepted and denied. I don’t look at the denied ones much, but I had to do a double take when I saw your name in that mess. Mixed in with the Maximoff twins and an unknown shapeshifter – sounded interesting, but I didn’t think too much about it until I read further. The four of you were written down as missing, which is pretty impressive if a locator spell from the Scarlet Witch can’t find you.

“So naturally they’ve got this whole file, right, with all this Intel on the lot of you, where they think you are, what they think you’re doing – some of those are really creative. But the latest stuff they had on you was this comic book shop – you know the one I’m sure – kind of on the edge of town, but just short of this S.H.I.E.L.D. facility’s jurisdiction. They said you might have a lookout there, so I thought what the hell, why not?

“As for what I know? I know about as much that’s been said about you, and that’s a shit ton. I know William and Thomas Maximoff aren’t  _really_  the Scarlet Witch’s sons, but that’s a complicated mess. Don’t know much about the other shapeshifter, but I know enough about you to know that you aren’t him. Or she. Whatever.”

There came a long stretch of silence after Tony stopped talking. Loki had taken to staring at him again, scrutinizing him underneath a steely glare and Tony tried not to squirm underneath it. He kept his poker face up, an expression of hopefulness and childish wonder. It sat comfortably, but he couldn’t help but think Loki could see right through him.

“You… are tricky,” Loki finally spoke, low and carefully. He plopped himself down next to Tony, their knees touching as he leaned in close. “And why would S.H.I.E.L.D. not use you to lure us out?”

“Are you kidding? Howard’s work aside, don’t you think I’d be a little too flashy?”

“Flashy is one way to describe it.” Loki paused, humming quietly. He sat back, narrowing his eyes at Tony. “You realize we are serious about this, this isn’t just some hobby you can pick up and put down. We aren’t here to entertain you and your childish fantasies.”

“I know that.” Tony almost sounded offended. “You think I  _want_  to take over Stark Industries? It’s a birthright and that’s all it is to me. But this? C’mon, Loki, this is an opportunity… a second chance even. I want to be something other than Howard Stark’s son. Haven’t you ever wanted something like that?”

Tony may not have known much, but he knew enough that that was a personal blow if he ever saw one. He feigned innocence though. Tony hadn’t been alive when the old Loki had died, nor when he was reborn again, but he knew about old Loki from newspaper clippings and published books. Old Loki was no saint, and if he could see his reborn self now maybe he’d be throwing a tantrum the afterlife had never seen. Or maybe not, Tony didn’t know old Loki the way Thor knew old Loki. What Tony did know was that new Loki was doing his damnedest to be one of the good guys.

It took Tony a moment to realize Loki had finally stopped staring at him and had taken up interest with the ugly shag rug. Bull’s-eye.

“Should you make me regret this decision, I will personally have you hanging from the highest building in this dirty city, is that understood?” Loki’s voice held no bite, but Tony was no fool. “You have one chance to prove your worth.”

“Sounds like a deal. Or a death wish,” Tony grinned cheekily, adding, “Hopefully the former.”

“Probably both,” Loki returned the grin, sharp and all teeth. “Come, I’ll take us to the rest of the team.” He outstretched his hand to Tony, who looked at it thoughtfully before taking it. His skin was cold and dry. Loki said something more, sounded like one word, maybe two, but Tony didn’t hear it. It washed away with a rush of air that took his breath away. He felt both heavy and weightless, as if he were moving at warp speed but his surroundings were standing still. All too quickly he stopped, everything stopped, and Tony almost lost his breakfast all over a rug that was not shag or ugly.

 

Tony lost his breakfast in the toilet, head spinning worse than any hangover he’d had and organs feeling like they had been rearranged in his throat. Loki had teleported them from Tony’s extravagant apartment to the team’s not-so-luxurious and hopefully temporary headquarters. Not quite located on the edge of town, Loki had found a rundown warehouse that Billy had made look like a five-star New York City high-rise apartment on the inside. After having carved a sigil into the ceiling with Billy’s spell locked away inside, the headquarters was practically fool proof. But Tony Stark couldn’t be seen leaving and entering an abandoned piece of shit building on the outskirts of town, and the team had their fingers crossed for a transfer and quick. Namely the Stark mansion, but that would be discussed after the team had unanimously accepted Tony into their ranks. And that wouldn’t happen until after Tony was finished upchucking his gluten free waffles into their toilet.

“Loki?” A voice unfamiliar to Tony rang outside the bathroom. Loki turned towards it, cracking the door open enough for him to peek around. The person’s footsteps stopped in front of the doorway, asking, “Are you all right?”

“Tired, but I’m all right. This one, on the other hand,” Loki pushed the door open further so that a brunette a little shorter than the young God could peer in. “Is not.”

“Excuse m… me for not being used… to whatever the hell you just did,” Tony heaved, sitting his face back into the toilet bowl.

“Oh my God,” Billy gasped, wide-eyed and grinning. “Oh my  _God_ , you really brought him here? And in one piece?”

“Somewhat.” Loki replied dryly.

“Tommy! Teddy, come here!”

Tommy arrived first, to no one’s surprise, coming in to Loki’s room in a blur of white hair and green sweatshirt. He shoved his head next to Billy’s and let out the same excited gasp the warlock had just a moment ago. Tony took a moment to pull his head out of the toilet to flush it, looking over at Loki and the two newcomers. They looked exactly the same, save their hair color. They must’ve been the Maximoff twins. Towering above and behind them was a blond with plenty of metal piercings in his ears. He looked indifferent about the entire situation, but still sported a small smile and a shrug when Loki looked over to him.

“I’m guessing he passed your test?” The one Tony assumed was Teddy asked.

“He is the true son of Stark, I didn’t sense any bugs in his apartment, and he seems somewhat committed to our cause,” Loki answered, folding his arms over his chest. “I figured I ought to let the rest of you decide whether he should be a part of the team or not.”

“I’ll… be there is a minute…” Tony huffed, leaning his forehead on the cool porcelain.

\- - -

 

“I can no longer sense Tony Stark’s presence,” Wanda Maximoff said, floating gently to the floor of Director Fury’s office. Her eyes had since stopped glowing and she blinked them to her boss. “He is either dead or they transported him to their hideout.”

“That’s comforting,” Clint Barton mused, tapping his boots together on the meeting desk. “Should Widow and I scope out his apartment or what?”

“No,” Fury answered, putting a hand up to silence the rest of the questions. “We’ll wait until they show us another sign. And when they do, I want you and Black Widow to follow them.”

“Yes’sir.” A simultaneous reply from both assassins.

“And us, Director?” Wanda asked, gesturing to herself and Thor.

“You’ve done your part. We’ll notify you as things develop. You’re dismissed.”

Wanda nodded, turning on her heels for the door with Thor in tow. Outside the doors, Pietro leaned against a wall in wait for his sister and took up step beside her as she passed. No one spoke until they were in the elevator.

“I’m going to assume by your rigid expression that you’re angry,” Pietro noted quietly, turning his face only slightly to look at her.

“I don’t trust Fury,” she said simply, a calm tone but anyone who knew the Scarlet Witch knew better.

“Welcome to the club.”

“But I trust Anthony Stark,” Thor added, a gentle smile on his face. “I trust he is alive and that he will do as  _we_  asked.”

Wanda smiled at that. “I do too.”

 

\- - -

 

The boys had seated their guest on the plush couch in front of the television. It was muted, a movie playing across the screen. Tony sat in one corner, Loki on the other, leaving Tommy on the armchair and his brother and boyfriend on the second couch. They listened intently as Loki gave them a rundown on what he’d been doing the past week – to Tony’s surprise he’d been spying on him – and what they’d all ready gone over to alleviate questions from being repeated. One question remained obvious, hanging in the air above their heads.

“So what exactly can you do?” Tommy asked blatantly. “I mean, you don’t have any powers. That we know of anyway.”

“Will you be more of a sidelines kinda guy or in the fray with us?” Billy added, leaning over the arm of the couch.

“Definitely in the fray, I’ve got a ton of tech to show you guys back at the mansion,” Tony said, digging around in his pockets. “In fact, I’ve got a few blueprints on… my phone? Where’d I put my phone?”

“On the side table, next to the milkshakes,” Loki answered with a smirk. “You can be tracked with it, so I did not remind you to take it.”

“Fine. Back at the mansion then, I’ve got a whole basement that acts as my workshop. If you guys aren’t opposed to moving, I can probably clear out a room or two and reconstruct it into a training room or something.” Tommy let out a whoop, bouncing up on the furniture. “Weapons, bugs, you name it, I either have it, can make it, or modify it.”

“What kind of weapons?” Teddy asked carefully. He paused before adding, “ _Regular_  weapons?”

Tony knew what he meant. “I don’t have any affiliation with Howard’s work, if that’s what you’re referring to. Everything I’ll be using is my stuff, no one touches it but me.”

Teddy’s shoulders seemed to relax after that, satisfied with the answer. Billy smiled next to him, firing the next question. “What’re the blueprints you were talking about?”

“Okay so get this – I found some blueprints of this thing in the ecology department of Stark Industries. It’s called an arc reactor, and it pretty much powers the whole company with clean energy. I managed to make a smaller model, comprised of relatively the same amount of energy, and it can power anything, but within limits. I tried it on the toaster, don’t ask about the toaster,” Tony shook his head, talking too fast. “Anyway, I’m working on this suit of armor, okay? The blueprints are designs for one, powered by the arc reactor. It’s taken me about two years to finesse the model, but I’ve finalized it and it’s ready to be put into action. Sort of. I still need to make it, but logistics. In theory, I’ll be able to fly around in it, beat up bad guys, hero saves the day, parade, confetti, done deal.”

“How long will it take you to complete, this machine of yours?” Loki asked, tilting his head up.

“Give me two months max.” Tony shrugged. “Otherwise I can outfit you guys with whatever you need and work on the training room.”

“Okay,” Billy said, leaning back into the couch and Teddy. “I’m satisfied. You?” He looked up at the other, who nodded.

“You don’t need to ask me twice, let’s do this!” Tommy fidgeted in his seat.

Tony looked to Loki, expecting something out of him besides the small, quiet hum that vibrated from him. He was giving him that look again, that look that Tony swore could see the dirt under his fingernails and the secrets he was hiding, all from staring down the bridge of his nose. His lips pressed into a thin line, before parting for words.

“Okay,” Loki said, slowly at first before giving a stronger, “Okay.” He threw a hand up, throwing green and gold confetti at Tony. “Congratulations! You are now officially part of New York City’s most wanted superhero team. Now, on to your mansion.”

“Yeah, okay,” Tony carded his hands through his hair, shaking out the loose confetti. “I’ll call my driver over and – ”

Loki put his fingers to Tony’s mouth, getting into his personal space like he’d done before at the apartment. “Don’t act stupid.”

“What?”

“We can’t let anyone know we’ve been here,” Billy said, getting up from the couch. He stretched his arms above his head, letting something click into place before relaxing. “I’ll teleport us there.”

“Did we all forget about how I threw up in your bathroom like ten minutes ago, or?” Tony gestured erratically, but his complaints went unnoticed. Tommy slapped a hand on his shoulder.

“Don’t worry, when Billy’s teleportation works it’s a lot smoother than Loki’s,” he reassured.

“And what happens when it doesn’t work?” Tony looked from Tommy to Billy, slowly getting up from the couch. Tommy shrugged and Billy made a sort of unsure hand gesture coupled with a facial expression that didn’t look all that reassuring. “Fantastic.”

“Live a little,” Loki teased, elbowing him in the ribs. “Give me your hand.”

“You all like to hold hands a lot.”

“Yeah, get used to it,” Tommy pouted, taking Billy and Tony’s hand. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions, comments, concerns, constructive criticism, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comments section below!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: February 24


	4. revelations on (moral) relativity

The five of them stood in a circle, waiting quietly as Billy focused. He was nowhere near the Scarlet Witch’s powerhouse, but it sat in him, dormant and waiting to be recognized. Teddy’s mom had self-help books that proved useful for Billy’s focusing. Chanting what he wanted in rapid succession also proved useful. Taking a deep breath in, Billy quietly began the spell.

“I want to go inside the Stark mansion,” he said once, slowly, taking in the words and focusing on just them. “I want to go inside the Stark mansion, I want to go inside the Stark mansion, I want to go inside the Stark mansion, IwanttogoinsidetheStarkmansionIwanttogoinsidetheStarkmansion – ”

“What is he doing?” Tony whispered to Loki, who shushed him.

“IwanttogoinsidetheStarkmansionIwant,” Billy began lifting off the ground, eyes glowing a luminescent blue. Teddy and Tommy kept their grips on his hands, keeping him leveled. “IwanttogoinsideStarkmansion.”

His last string of words echoed throughout the room and Tony caught himself feeling weightless again, only because he was. Everyone had lifted off the ground and the scenery around them changed. It wasn’t an entirely pleasant experience, but Tony didn’t feel like a two hundred ton object flying through space at the speed of light either. Eventually the environment around them began to look familiar to Tony, his living room. Slowly, his body lowered to the ground, as did everyone else besides Billy, and Tony couldn’t keep the excited grin off his face. When the warlock stopped chanting and his eyes blinked a normal, matte brown, Tony spoke again.

“That was fucking awesome!” He exclaimed. “No seriously, I know you had Scarlet Witch’s powers but holy shit, I’ve never actually like… been this close to something like that before.”

“You called me an insensitive bastard when I teleported you,” Loki scoffed, albeit playfully.

“Two points for me,” Billy grinned. “You ready to make the rune, Loki?”

“Yes.”

“Rune?” Tony asked, playing dumb.

“Loki’s gonna carve a sigil into your ceiling,” Tommy explained simply, zipping around the living room.

“Why?” No one had said anything about defacing his ceiling.

“Billy’s mom can locate us through a spell,” Teddy elaborated. “She also taught Billy how to disappear off the map for however long he can concentrate. So he’s going to put that spell into a rune that’ll permanently loop the spell so our parents won’t be able to find us.”

“Not that our parents are what we’re hiding from,” Tommy added, flitting into the kitchen. “Your kitchen is  _huge_!”

“Right… S.H.I.E.L.D.?” Teddy nodded, and Tony hummed. “Well, I doubt they’ll be looking here for you guys, I’m not exactly on their gold star rated list of people.”

“Even so,” Loki said, burning an unfamiliar symbol into the ceiling. Really, in the middle of the living room? “We can’t assume the Scarlet Witch won’t try to locate us again.”

Billy was levitating the two of them, both touching his higher than really necessary ceiling. The symbol wasn’t particularly big, but noticeable if someone happened to look up. Loki finished burning it into place, and Billy put his hand on it, palm flat against the charred sigil. He muttered something Tony couldn’t hear, another chanting ritual, and in a small flash of luminescent blue from Billy’s hand the burned markings were now buried an inch deep into his ceiling.

“It’s holding,” Billy said, lowering himself and Loki down.

“Great, so now what?” Tony asked.

“Now,” Loki said when his feet touched the ground. “You will show us the plans for this machine of yours.”

“Right, the lab. This way,” Tony motioned towards the group, taking them down a short hallway that soon descended into a basement. “Now, I’d say this is off limits to everyone but me, but two of you can teleport wherever you want whenever you want so I’ll just say don’t touch anything. Also, don’t be alarmed by the voice in the ceiling. My dad’s military friend came over once – we’re cool, he’s a cool guy – and shot a bullet into the ceiling. You guys are much more powerful than a gun, so don’t freak out please.”

“Why is there a voice in your ceiling?” Tommy asked.

“His name is JARVIS – Just A Really Very Intelligent System – awesome, I know. It also happens to be our late butler’s last name. I tried to match his personality and put into a machine that fed through the house, but he can be dry sometimes. But don’t worry, he’s only in the lab for right now and on a private server that I’d just love to see S.H.I.E.L.D. try and hack into.” Tony chuckled to himself, but no one else seemed to share in the humor.

The staircase finally ended at a Plexiglas door with a keypad next to it. Tony tapped the code in with one hand, a quick gesture, and the door opened with a chic, “Welcome back, sir.”

“Hey JARVIS. Meet everyone, everyone meet JARVIS,” Tony motioned to the ceiling and then back at the group. “And this is my not-so-secret lab. JARVIS, be a dear and bring up the plans for T-1KS.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Wow,” Billy gawked, standing next to a fidgeting Tommy. “Wow, wow, wow. This is amazing.”

“You built this?” Teddy asked.

“Kind of. Howard started it, and then abandoned it for a lab at the company. He wasn’t home much, so I took over finishing it and turned it into my own little pad. Neat, huh?”

“Incredible!” Billy piped up.

The Stark Mansion  _was_  pretty incredible. A total of six floors, two of which were unused, the place was big enough to fit a gaggle of superheroes and not just lonely Tony. The first floor was basic living; kitchen, living room, outdoor patio, and a study area. The second floor housed bedrooms and bathrooms, and the third floor worked as an attic for all of Howard and Maria’s stuff Tony hadn’t sold off yet. The first floor basement was Tony’s lab with a garage way in the back. Tony already had the gears grinding on how to turn the second floor – a room he used for testing not-so entirely safe experiments – into a training room. The lowest level of the house wasn’t used for very much and acted like a junk drawer, much like the top floor of the house.

Tony’s lab fit somewhere between futuristic technology and a bachelor pad for one. There was a lounge with a bar and plush couches near the handful of retro cars at the back, whereas the rest of the three-quarters of the floor were chock full of wires, chrome tubing, and flashing lights. The cement floor muted Tony’s footsteps as he made his way to the center of the room where a translucent “loading” flashed every second or so. It only took about five seconds until a file folder appeared. Tony pressed his finger into what was really only thin air, but the folder highlighted before exploding into a mess of text files and blueprints. Loki’s interest finally peaked as everything unraveled literally around them, floating in its technology space, enlarging and shrinking as Tony tried to find his latest finalized version.

“And here we are,” Tony announced, shoving away the other useless documents to enlarge the blueprint. “This is the final model I’ve been working on. It’s made of titanium alloy, dense enough to protect me but light enough to, theoretically, propel me through the air. Here and here,” he pointed at the gauntlets and boots. “Are where I’ll be putting repulsors to allow me to fly – again the flying thing it completely theoretical but I’m ninety-nine percent sure it’ll be a total success. The ones at the hands can also be used as a weapon, like a burst of energy. I’ll be putting other weapons in other places; there’s a lot of empty space around the shoulders and here at the abdomen and – ”

“What is this?” Loki interrupted, poking at the center of the chest. It was a round, circular device, presumably the power source.

“The arc reactor.”

“May we see it?” Loki asked, continuing to poke and prod at the holographic blueprints. He held an expression akin to child-like wonder, not wholly impressed by all the flashing lights as the rest of the team, but solely more curious about the blueprint in particular.

“Sure, stay here.” Tony grinned, equally as child-like and excited as he bound to another part of the lab, rummaging through metal boxes. He came back a moment later with a square container no larger than his hands. Carefully, he opened it up and retrieved the said arc reactor, dormant without an outlet. “This is it. And it’ll go right there, in the center.”

“Unprotected?” Loki asked.

“No, they’ll be a thick layer of metal and glass protecting it and – ”

“But it is still visible to the eye, making it vulnerable. How safe is it?”

“Pretty safe, but – ”

“Durable? Does it work like a battery, where the power eventually dissolves?”

“Well yeah, I can recharge it, but I’d have to test it inside the actual suit to see how long it can last. If I had to guess I’d say six hours, just for the prototype anyway. The one at the company sustains itself for about a year before being replaced. Plus it’s – hey! No, be careful with it!”

Loki snatched the arc reactor from Tony’s hand, examining it for himself. It was lighter than he expected, smaller too, but if what Tony said was true – and Loki didn’t doubt it – then it would be a very powerful ally to them. Billy looked over Loki’s shoulder, moving a hand to touch the arc reactor, but Loki moved it away.

“You should not be touching this,” Loki advised.

“Why not?” It was Tony who asked.

“Billy’s powers are energy-based,” Loki explained, flipping the device around in his hand. “I fear what would happen if he touched it.”

“I don’t understand. I thought he could warp reality.”

“I can,” Billy spoke up. “But that’s not all I can do. I actually prefer not to unless I have to. I can summon thunder, and manipulate raw energy into simple shapes. Like force fields and stuff.”

“Yeah, don’t touch that.”

“Loki shouldn’t be touching it either.” Billy pursed his lips. “Technically, his powers are energy-based too.”

“Technically, I have magic. Asgardian magic is different.”

“Is not, we’ve been over this!”

“Okay!” Tony shouted, grabbing the arc reactor back from Loki. “How about no one touches it except me. It’s safe, durable, and once I get the machine built we can test it for sure.”

“We’ll take your word for it, for now,” Loki said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I get the feeling you aren’t entirely impressed,” Tony huffed as he put the arc reactor back into its box.

“Should I be?”

“Everyone else is.”

“I am not everyone,” Loki turned his back to Tony, taking a step towards the exit. “I’ll be impressed when I see this flying machine of yours working as intended.”

The glass door slid open as Loki approached it, and slid to a close when he began climbing the staircase.

“Don’t worry,” Teddy said, patting Tony on the shoulder. “If he wasn’t at least a little impressed with you, he wouldn’t have agreed to let you in on this. We’re glad to have you on the team.”

“Thanks,” Tony said heavily. “I’ll try not to disappoint.”

“Doubt it,” Billy smiled. “Can we check out the rest of the house?”

“Be my guest.”

“Race you to the bedrooms!” Tommy challenged as he flitted out of the room.

 

\- - -

 

Sleep never did come easy for Tony. He could be found tinkering in his lab, at a party, or tinkering during a party depending on how boring the party proved. His brain hardly ever shut off, but tonight Tony found himself tinkering for a completely different reason. Guilt. He had, no matter the circumstances, just lied to four super-powered young adults, one of which being a reincarnated chaos god, another having the powers to warp and bend reality at his will, and another being a rumored half-Skrull half-Kree hybrid, one of the two were practically indestructible against any weapon besides their own so yeah. Guilt.

Scratch that, it wasn’t entirely a lie. Tony definitely wanted to be a superhero, had always wanted that since he was a kid and saw Ms. Marvel zooming around his television screen. This suit would be his ticket out there, to zoom around other kids’ television screens. It was S.H.I.E.L.D. who had given him this opportunity, and Tony didn’t like it. He didn’t like S.H.I.E.L.D. He did like Thor, though, who seemed genuine and sincere throughout their conference. The Scarlet Witch, too, seemed trustworthy enough.

It didn’t take away from the fact that S.H.I.E.L.D. would be monitoring him, monitoring the team. That Tony  _had_  spoken to Thor, had spoken to Director Fury, and was, for all intensive purposes, there to lure out the team. He was the bug.

So Tony tinkered away his guilt, funneled it into his outlet. It seemed as good a time as any to start putting his three-dimensional hologram blueprints of his suit into three-dimensional real life. He began working on the hand repulsors first and planned to work on the boots next. They would be easier to test rather than pulling the whole suit together; they would be his means of transportation. If they didn’t work, he’d be borderline useless in the field.

“You are a restless man,” Loki’s voice echoed throughout the room and Tony dropped his wrench on the table, jolting in his seat.

“ _Fuck_ , don’t you make any noise?” Tony breathed, pulling himself back together. Loki chuckled from the corner of the room, stepping towards the work desk and into Tony’s line of sight. “Is this something I need to get used to?”

“Yes,” Loki grinned. “Why are you still awake?”

“Can’t sleep, too anxious.” A half-lie. “Do you make it a habit to spy on people?”

Loki shrugged, strolling around Tony’s work desk, eyeing all the little gears and coils and gadgets. He picked a few things up, just because he could, and fiddled with them until he lost interest. It was dark in the lab, the only like coming from the overhead railing with three spotlights on dim. The lighting made Loki’s features look even sharper, dangerous. He tilted his head to one side, eyeing a particularly curious piece of metal, and all at once his features became younger, childish. Tony didn’t know what to make of him, he had a hard time forming his own opinion beyond what Thor had told him.

“I’m trying to figure you out,” Loki finally spoke, and despite how low his voice was it still sounded loud. “To be objective about it.”

“And you’re going to do that by creeping at me in the shadows?” Tony quipped, offering the other a smirk. He picked up what he’d been working on before and continued with it. “Could always, you know, talk to me.”

“Who says you won’t lie to me?”

“I don’t have  _that_  big of a death wish,” Tony rolled his eyes. “Anyway, aren’t you, like, the god of lies or something?”

“Once, perhaps,” Loki put the piece of metal back down on the worktable. “Reincarnation is a funny thing.”

They settled into a comfortable silence then, Tony working and Loki curiously touching all the things Tony had asked them not to touch when they’d first come down to the lab. He trusted Loki not to break anything though. No matter how much he tried to play the adult within his group, his youth oozed through more often than Loki wanted. Like now, playing with the hologram again, spinning the model machine around, enlarging it, pressing on it so that the parts exploded into a three-dimensional render of everything it was made up of. He seemed to quickly get a handle for the holographic displays. The blue light it emitted flooded across his face, softening the edges, and more than once Tony caught himself looking up at Loki.

“The arc reactor,” his voice sounded loud again. “Is it your father’s work?”

Tony fidgeted on his stool and answered, “Yeah, kinda. It was sort of a publicity stunt to get them in good favor with environmentalists. He only built one, probably forgot about. But it’s safe.”

“So you keep saying,” Loki lifted an eyebrow at him.

“I just don’t want you guys thinking it’s dangerous because Howard invented it.”

“I don’t.” The hologram spun and Loki pointed to something else, enlarging it, reading the notes Tony typed out next to them.

It was another hour before either one of them spoke again. Tony was lost in his work, finding his groove now that he wasn’t holding a conversation, and Loki found himself content reading everything Tony had written about his machine. When one of them did speak, Loki, it was to bid the other goodnight – “Mr. Stark” – as he quietly made his way towards the exit and headed up the staircase.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions, comments, concerns, constructive criticism, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comments! Thanks for reading!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: March 3


	5. protocol

“They’re at the Stark Mansion,” Wanda said casually over the small table.

Pietro sipped at his coffee like his sister hadn’t said anything, but Thor set his fork onto the plate loudly, snapping his attention to his comrade.

“You know where they are?” He asked, dumbfounded.

“She didn’t stop channeling the locator spell after we left S.H.I.E.L.D. last night, and she caught them teleporting to Tony’s mansion,” said Pietro into his mug. He picked at a forkful of overcooked egg, shoving it into his mouth and speaking around it, “Two minutes later they vanished again, which means they put the rune up.”

They settled into silence, letting the sounds of the morning news and silverware chinks filter through the suite. Twenty-five floors down, the streets were abuzz with morning traffic. It was quiet, unperturbed by anything for the moment.

“You won’t tell S.H.I.E.L.D.” It was a statement, not a question.

“No,” Wanda said simply, giving Thor a knowing look over her teacup. “I won’t.”

S.H.I.E.L.D. had always been an elusive yet massive powerhouse since the world knew about people who were gifted. They coined themselves as a safe house for the super-powered, an accepted place for them to live freely without harm. Over the decades, superheroes were common crop, as were their villainous counterparts, and it lulled into a norm. Like racists even after the Civil War, naturally there were people who hated the gifted through and through. It didn’t matter if they risked their lives, promised themselves to the good of the people; some people were just gifted with otherworldly stubbornness. S.H.I.E.L.D. only expanded, creating teams around the world. Headquarters was based on the East Coast of the United States, where Director Fury, head honcho himself, prevailed. All orders derived from him, and his orders from an even higher power not many knew about. They monopolized superheroes and would go as far as to say that they also had a firm grip on world peace. They were not all beloved, though. Some super-powered beings feared them, fled their open arms to seek refuge elsewhere. Others grouped together to perform against them. It was to be expected, but they had to be doing something right as they still stood today, firm and steady.

It wasn’t that Thor and Wanda didn’t trust S.H.I.E.L.D., they had not steered them wrong since the days they had pledged themselves amongst the core group known as the Avengers, but it was hard to fully trust a corporation that held deep, dark secrets. Just because they were part of the original make-up didn’t mean they knew all the ins and outs. Perhaps the curtains had lifted just enough for them to doubt, or maybe it had nothing to do with S.H.I.E.L.D. at all. Their kin were involved, they were worried despite their calm facades, and they wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize them.

Tony Stark was their ace in the hole, even if Fury didn’t think so. Young, rebellious, eager; he was the right one for the job. While Fury had asked him to report any and all happenings straight back to headquarters, Wanda amused herself with the thought of how exactly he expected Tony to do that when he, technically, was untraceable. No, this was not his bug. What Thor and Wanda couldn’t do, Tony would do for them. S.H.I.E.L.D. had extensive data on the Stark family, which was how his name had popped up into the conversation in the first place. Dr. Banner and Richards had helpfully found said files and handed them off to Thor and Wanda, who, upon reading it over, placed all bets on the son of Howard. The Intelligence team had gotten nothing on Tony that would lead them to believe he was any type of threat towards their kind. Fury hadn’t liked it, but he was getting nowhere with his own plan. He wasn’t the type to argue a God.

Even so, after a week of no information, Director Fury was beginning to get impatient. He called in Natasha Romanov and Clint Barton, a special operations team. If they needed information, Fury called them in.

“I’m in the dark, I need eyes out there,” Fury ordered, folding his hands behind his back. “Wanda says she can’t find them, which tells me they haven’t moved from their previous hideout. I want to know where that is.”

“That lookout they have, Blake Finnigan. He might be the one to lead us to them,” Natasha suggested. She gently tossed a pile of photographs of the boy talking to two strangers. A scrawny blonde and a busty ebon-haired woman. “We have reason to believe those two are Theodore Altman and Loki. It would make sense for the shape shifters to go out. They slipped up once, there’s a change they’ll do it again.”

“Stake the place,” Fury nodded. “Three weeks – if they don’t show up there or anywhere else around the city, bring the kid in.”

“Yes’sir.”

 

\- - -

 

The training facility on the second underground floor was coming along nicely. It sat right beneath Tony’s lab and the only way to get to it was by taking the stairs down to the first basement level. The bottom three floors of Stark Mansion had sort of a Stark family only quarantine on them. No one was allowed in the lab, except now Tony’s new teammates, and if one wasn’t allowed there, no one was getting access anywhere else. An elevator in the back could take them down to basement level two and three, three being a junk warehouse, and two now having been turned into a training facility. In between putting together his suit, Tony worked on an interactive training environment, active and reactive to everyone’s powers. It included different environment settings, difficulties, and an array of villains with their respective henchmen. Surrounded by state of the art blast doors, the entire training area took up a good ninety-percent of the room leaving enough space for anyone outside to watch what was going on inside through monitors.

It acted, in theory, like a simulator. Depending on the environment chosen depended on the weather, the holographic yet sturdy terrain that would generate, how well lit the area would be, and what obstacles would stand in the way. The enemies would hurt, but not kill, and should JARVIS feel the person or people inside would be too injured to continue fighting, the simulator would be shut down automatically. Everything would be recorded, should anyone want to review it for later, and saved on Tony’s private server.

“Should be all set. How’s it feel JARVIS?” Tony patted the one of a dozen devices attached to the ceiling and walls of the enclosed area.

“ _Everything is functioning at one hundred percent, sir. Training Protocol is ready to be activated._ ”

“Awesome!” Tony grinned and turned his attention down to Billy. “I’m ready to come down now.”

Billy nodded and made a small hand gesture, causing the circular bit of raw energy to come floating down gently, bringing Tony with him. Much better than a ladder, and safer – in theory.

“Right, so who wants to try it out first?” Tony asked as his feet touched the ground, hands on his hips and a proud smirk gracing his face.

“You won’t test your own invention?” Loki teased. Tony made a face in his direction before scanning the rest of the team.

Tommy’s hand shot up after a moment’s breath. “I’ll do it! Let’s see if this hunk of metal can keep up with me.”

“ _I do not appreciate being called as such, young sir._ ” JARVIS commented politely.

“I’ll take it back if you can keep up,” the speedster offered one of the infrared cameras a cheeky grin as he strolled to the middle of the room. Everyone else left the area, and once they were behind the blaster doors, Tommy engaged the system. “Okay JARVIS, city environment, easy difficulty and, uh… guys, who would we likely be up against?”

“Jeez,” Billy rolled his eyes.

“What villain records do you have programmed?” Loki asked.

“All that S.H.I.E.L.D. has to offer,” answered Tony.

Loki’s eyes widened, mildly impressed if only a little. He fell silent in thought, but it was Teddy who answered with, “The Enchantress.”

Tommy heard them through the microphone outside traveling to the overhead speakers, and repeated it for JARVIS. It took him 1.2 seconds to initiate and Tommy was off, zipping around the room. They could barely follow him on the hologram monitors, and could only really follow the pattern of disintegrating holographic images of Amora. The program was good, but Tommy was better, outrunning every spell, every counter act, and returning it tenfold. One hologram dissipated, another appeared, immediately attacking with a barrage of magic missiles. One of them grazed Tommy in the arm, which physically stung. He let out a yelp in surprise, grabbing his arm and almost stopping in his tracks if it hadn’t been for Amora mounting another attack. Tommy dodged it with ease, and sideswiped Amora. Another arose, this time on a balcony. Tommy bounded towards the building, and leapt up to reach her, falling short and only able to grab her arm. Close enough, he figured, as he fell to the ground. The air knocked out of him and Tommy gasped loudly, Amora rolled to a stop next to him. He fumbled to his feet before she could and he gave her a good kick, rolling her down the street and into the front bumper of a car. Tommy charged her then, but Amora was up, palm out, and it was lights out.

“Force field.” Loki clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth, suppressing a grin.

A stream of colorful swears flooded the airwaves and Tony shut the simulator down. The blast doors opened to an empty area with Tommy in the center on his back, shouting, with his hands cupping his bleeding nose.

“Son of a bitch!”

“ _Very good, young sir. You lasted three minutes and twelve point zero two seconds to Amora the Enchantress, easy level difficulty. May I suggest that next time you avoid the magic force field?_ ”

“I fucking know, Jesus!” Tommy yelled.

“JARVIS, the sass,” Tony said it like a warning, but gave him a thumbs up when Tommy wasn’t looking.

“Is it broken?” Billy asked, kneeling down next to Tommy.

“Does it look broken?” Tommy spat, moving his hands out of the way.

“Oh gross, yeah, definitely broken.”

“Why the hell does this hurt back?” He whined.

“Oh, by the Nine, cease your wailing.” Loki walked over to Tommy and touched his nose, whispering a spell. The nose, once painfully crooked, slipped back into its original shape and the blood stopped flowing. “Go clean yourself up. But your question is valid.”

All eyes turned to Tony, who put his hands up defensively. “I didn’t know that was gonna happen. I put it little sensors that would sting a little when you got shot or stabbed or something, but I should probably tone down the force fields and other things like it.”

“Don’t,” Loki said, above Tommy’s protests. “It makes for a real training scenario. I’m impressed.”

He grinned wickedly at Tony, who offered one of equal mischief back before asking, “You wanna give it a go?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Loki tried fighting Doombots, nasty swarming little buggers, on an easy difficulty in a city environment. He admitted to not having tried using his powers in anything more threatening than a fight with a drunken mortal, so he wasn’t entirely capable of what he could still conjure up. Daggers, though, seemed to be a crowd favorite. He summoned on after another, keeping his attackers at close range and destroying them with brutal precision. What he couldn’t do with his magic, he substituted for a quick, clean stab. He lasted for fifteen minutes and ten point three seconds.

“Medium, I suppose, next time.” Loki chided breathlessly to himself as he left the facility.

Billy and Teddy tag teamed, as they felt most comfortable fighting together. They’d practiced once before, in a S.H.I.E.L.D. training facility when Wanda took them over once to see the public areas. Another city setting, Skrull enemies, and a medium difficulty. While Billy had much more power than Loki in his current state, he lacked the control his magical counterpart prevailed in. Teddy shifted into something comparable to the Hulk, green, but scaly, with claws looking downright terrifying. He lacked coordination. He was unaware of his surroundings which most of the time left him fumbling into the environment. They lasted five minutes and point six seconds.

“I think you all did really well for your first time,” Tony said as the last two exited the training room. “Even you Tommy.” He flipped Tony the bird as he dabbed a wet towel at his bloody face. “So feel free to use this whenever you feel like it. You can watch the recordings of yourself here when you’re done, just ask JARVIS to bring ‘em up. Any questions, concerns, comments, praises?”

“You did a good job on the system, Mr. Stark,” Loki complimented next to him, playing with the holographic desktop. “We appreciate it.”

“I don’t appreciate the bloody nose.”

“Don’t complain, at least we’ve got a place to train,” Billy elbowed his twin in the ribs. “C’mon let’s eat, I’m starving.”

Teddy, Tommy, and Billy headed for the elevator to the lab floor, leaving Tony and Loki to themselves. Tony turned to the only one left, hands on his hips.

“I appreciate the compliment.”

“Don’t get accustomed to it,” Loki offered a half smirk, busy with the hologram. “Every villain is in your database, you said?”

“Yup.”

“Even me?”

Tony tripped over his words a moment, left gapping before picked himself up. “Yeah, sorry, didn’t think about that. Just kinda downloaded it all from the S.H.I.E.L.D. server to the system, I can delete you – ”

“Don’t.” A mask of stoic indifference slid onto Loki’s face, and Tony didn’t like it. “It could prove useful.”

“I don’t think Thor would appreciate it if I let you look at a simulation of yourself.”

“Why do you care about what my brother thinks?” Loki turned to face Tony completely, curiosity filling his expression.

“I just… I dunno, didn’t think he’d want you to know that’s all.” Tony fumbled around again, scratching the back of his neck. “That’s past you, looking at that shouldn’t mean anything. And who’s going to use it as practice? Aren’t we trying to do team bonding or whatever Teddy is calling it.”

Loki fell silent and watched the screen flicker and move. He was right, what Tony was saying was by all accounts right. Thor would never want him to look at himself the way the simulator would portray him. Still, the curiosity to look and see was intense, made Loki’s fingers itch.

“Come on, I’ll order pizza,” Tony said, tapping his hands on the table in a random rhythm. “I’ll make us milkshakes too.”

“Do not think you can continue bribing me with frozen desserts,” Loki huffed, but he stepped away from the hologram anyway and began to follow Tony to the elevator.

“It’s been working so far,” he teased, and Loki made a face.

 

\- - -

 

The team gathered around the monitors, all anxious and excited, waiting for Tony to start the training protocol. In one week he’d finished his gauntlets, power source and all, and was ready to test them. He wore a Kevlar vest with the arc reactor hooked to the center. From it, wires spider webbed out across his arms until they reached his elbow where they disappeared into the metal, armor-less skeleton. It looked primitive, but for a prototype they were actually pretty cool looking. The palms of the hands held the weaponry, which would either shoot out a photon blast or blow half his arm off; they were hoping for the former.

“JARVIS, initiate the Training Protocol, open plain environment, difficulty easy, attacker Doombots.”

“ _Right away sir._ ”

The simulation started, holographic Doombots swarmed from the edges of the arena, and Tony went to testing. He held his right arm up, palm out and stared down a Doombot. A light pressure, he reminded himself, and the photon blast shot out. It worked, but his hands were going to burn without the proper armor. Too excited to stop, he continued, blasting the Doombots away with a sloppy precision. Too soon, however, they began to swarm closer, and Tony became overwhelmed. He wasn’t fluent in close combat, that was painfully obvious. But, it was a start and he had all his limbs.

“ _Two minutes and twenty-six point four seconds – very good sir. Your close combat skills need much improvement.”_

“Yes, thanks JARVIS. Good job for you too, the simulation’s working perfectly.” He patted the blast walls before exiting the room. Immediately he began peeling off the gauntlets, overheated and beginning to sting. “How was that?”

“You’re alive,” Loki said dully.

“I meant the tech, how’d it look?”

“That was awesome!” Billy exclaimed.

“You need to work on tactical fighting though,” Loki added, moving over to help Tony remove the weaponry. His hands were already blistering. “You didn’t think to wear gloves?”

“I was excited, so sue me.”

Loki  _tsked_  in the back of his throat, moving his fingers over his right hand to heal the flesh. He repeated the action on the left, and checked to see if anything else seemed to be wounded. “It was a good first try though, at least it works. But,” he gave Tony a knowing look. “Can you fly?”

“That’s step two,” Tony nodded, shucking the rest of his equipment off. “Which is about halfway done.”

“How long until you get the rest of it worked out?” Asked Billy.

“One more month?” Tony offered. “Maybe sooner.”

“We don’t mean to rush, it’s just… we’re kinda anxious to get out there,” Teddy shrugged, giving him a shy grin. “Even if we aren’t one hundred percent ready for the big leagues – we can still handle a robbery or a car chase or something.”

“No yeah, I’ll get everything ready ASAP. Until then, we’ll train as much as we can.”

And that’s what they did. Every morning, after breakfast, they’d go down to the second basement floor and start training, greeting Tony on the way down. He’d wave at them haphazardly, screwdriver between his teeth and his other hand tapping out calculations on a hologram. Parts would be scattered across his work desk, astray and unorganized but as soon as Tony muffled an “ah-ha” he’d snatch a piece that would miraculously fit into whatever he was working on. Loki would spend a lot of his downtime watching him work. Every so often, Tony would take a break to exercise his newly calibrated gauntlets or to improve his time, and while the tech was impressive his downfall would always end the same.

“ _Three minutes and fifty-six point zero nine seconds, sir. A new record. May I suggest next time that –  ”_

“Yeah, I know.” Tony let out a frustrated sigh. “My close-combat skills need work.”

“ _Desperately so._ ”

“ _Thank you_ , JARVIS.”

Tony exited the training arena, unhooking himself from his newly improved gauntlets. He’d increased the power output and finished the protective coating both inside and outside; a shining platinum now dirtied by the photon blasts around the edges.

“You’re improving,” Loki said, looking at the brunette from behind a hologram. His arms were crossed over his chest, mouth poised to say more, but whatever it was he let it go. Tony only hummed in response to him.

They were the only two in the lower level tonight, the rest opted to have a night off and watch a movie on Tony’s ridiculously large flat screen in the living room. It offered Tony a moment to train, and Loki followed suit having found little interest in the movie the boys had picked. He’d been interested in the improvements to Tony’s tech, but that unfortunately seemed to be the only improvement.

“Hopefully once I get things flying, this close-combat thing shouldn’t be an issue,” Tony grumbled, seemingly ignoring the compliment.

“Not necessarily.” The engineer gave him a questioning look and Loki continued, “What if one of your thrusters in the boots go out and you’re grounded? What then? Or what if we end up fighting indoors and there isn’t enough room for you to ascend?”

“Crash course on close-combat training,” Tony falsely suggested with a shrug. “I dunno.”

“Take this seriously,” Loki snapped and the other straightened his posture. “It will be a disadvantage we cannot afford to have should we be put in such a situation. Here… take these off.”

He moved to help Tony disassemble his gauntlets and set them on the table before grabbing his wrist and bringing him back into the training room. They stopped in the middle of the room, facing each other. Loki positioned himself the way he usually did before asking JARVIS to start his training course, legs shoulder-width apart and arms up at his abdomen. Without his daggers, though, his fingers were loose, palms down.

“Hit me,” Loki instructed, making a small motion to his face.

“Are you kidding?”

“Do I look to be jesting? Strike me with your best, go on.”

Tony hesitated before trying to mimic Loki’s stance as best he could. He put his hands up higher, towards his face, and gave the other a wary look before rearing back for a swing. It would’ve hit him right on the curve of his cheekbone had Loki not deflected it away as if he were swatting away a wasp.

“That was rubbish, do it again.” Tony swung again, and Loki caught it in his hand with ease. “Again.”

“This is ridiculous, you’re a god and you have reflexes like a god,” Tony huffed.

“No, I am still learning myself,” Loki said sternly. “You seem to assume reincarnation is simply your old self within another form when it is quite the opposite.”

“You’re still a god.”

Loki put his hands down and relaxed his stance. “Is that how you will think should we cross paths with The Enchantress? Or Abomination? I thought you wanted to do this.”

“I  _do_ , but I won’t be in their faces trying to punch Abomination in the fucking jaw. I’m an aerial fighter.” Tony defended.

“What if we are fighting Vulture?” Loki countered. “What if he swoops in and snatches you up like a bit of prey. He will be quite close to you.”

“Okay,  _okay_!” An irritated sigh roughly left him, hands carding through his matted hair nervously. “So what, you’re gonna teach me how to fight by having me hit you in the face repeatedly?”

“ _If_  you can strike me.” Loki grinned sharply at him. “No, I will teach you technique that you will mold into your own style. We fight much differently you and I, this much is obvious. Here, mimic my stance until it sits comfortably for you.”

He took a step back from Tony and stood with his shoulders back, arms out in front near his abdomen, legs shoulder-width and staggered apart. Tony did the same, legs a little closer together but with one foot out much farther than the other. His hands were lowered down to his chest, but still higher than Loki’s.

“You need to understand the situation first; most likely, should you be grounded, enemies will know this is your weakness because you spend your time in the air. Since they have figured out your weakness, you must figure out theirs. You persist with Doombots; their weakness?”

 “Their core, centered right about their chest.” Tony pressed his hand flat against the center of his own.

“Good, now try to hit me again. Pay attention,” Loki took a step forward towards the other man, seemingly loose and relaxed. Tony swung at him and instead of slapping away his fist, Loki grabbed his wrist. He pulled Tony to him using his right arm and with his left hand, pressed it flush against Tony’s heart. “I would use this to stagger my opponent, but you have your repulsor blasters; at this range it should serve the purpose of defeat.”

Tony grinned, seemingly excited about something so simple. “Yeah, okay I see. Lemme try it.”

As simple as it looked, Loki coached him through it for a long while. He started off with a slow punch to Tony, and he grabbed his wrist sloppily. He tug was too weak and by that time Loki would’ve been able to counter him at least twice. More force, Loki instructed, and be quicker. Tony did his best to comply, and after about twenty minutes he was finally getting the hang of it.

“Villains, or rather their henchmen, are rather tenacious, but daft. Eager to please, it will give them a sort of tunnel vision about how to go about successfully pleasing their master. Skurge, Amora’s lapdog, is quite the example,” Loki rolled his eyes. “They will attack blindly, especially if you taunt them – ”

“You seem like you’d be an expert in that department,” Tony teased.

“Aye, still born with a silver tongue in my mouth,” Loki quirked an eyebrow at him. “Your mouth is no smaller for the task, either. Enrage them however you please, as soon as they are without thought, counter-attacking is your best ally. Spot a weakness, exploit it, and be victorious. It will make a horde of bots go much simpler. Here, another; should someone come from behind.”

Loki stood in front of Tony, though Tony felt another behind him, wrapping the crook of his arm around his neck in a firm hold, another twisting his arm back painfully. The Loki in front of him fizzled and disappeared while the one holding him stayed firm. Tony’s free hand shot up to grab hold of the arm around his neck, but Loki tisked him.

“Eyes, throat, ribs, knees, and the groin are sources of viable weaknesses. Use them to your advantage, but think quickly of your next move after you have staggered –  _oof_!”

Tony slammed his elbow into Loki’s ribcage and his chokehold loosened enough for him to move away from him. He turned on his heel, swinging for a punch but Loki smacked it southward before darting forward. Using the same hand he had used to deflect the punch, he brought it up and hit Tony on the underside of his jaw. Loki heard his teeth clack. Staggered, the trickster pushed forward, shoving him to the ground, bouncing on his bottom before landing flat on his back. Loki sat on his chest, arms comfortably pinned beneath both legs and a hand at Tony’s throat.

“You did not let me finish speaking,” Loki chided.

“If you were a bad guy, I wouldn’t let you,” Tony countered.

Loki narrowed his eyes at the man before giving him a lopsided grin. “Touché.”

“Am I interrupting something?” Tommy’s voice filtered through the room, a twisted look of confusion on his face. “Because I can totally come back way later.”

“Don’t be a child.”

“No, what – no.”

Both Tony and Loki gave each other a stoic look. Loki immediately pushed himself off of Tony’s chest, and Tony rolled away to pick himself up as well, simultaneously repeating, “No.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions, concerns, comments, constructive criticism, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comment's section! Thank you for reading!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: March 10


	6. metal men can to, can you?

Another week went by without any information. Thor, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch kept their mouths shut about the whereabouts of the children while Fury hit a dead end staking out the comic book shop outside of town. In a few days, he’d order Black Widow and Hawkeye to arrest the boy, Blake, who worked weekends. Meanwhile, the boys kept up their training and Tony kept tinkering away until he was finally able to share his prototype repulsor rockets. In between working, Loki pulled him away for more close-combat training. Tony was improving, but they wouldn’t be able to gauge his full range until his suit was completed. With the gauntlets and now the boots – theoretically – in place, the rest would be a simple technical engineering puzzle. Before any of that, however, Tony needed to test his flight capabilities.

“So, can anyone else here fly?” Tony asked down in the training room as he hooked his boots up. They were thigh-high, titanium alloy with the outer skeleton and wires showing. Tony had lined the inside with protective Kevlar, as to minimalize any damage in case this didn’t work. He wore the chest Kevlar, arc reactor in the center with wires tangled and hanging out. One boot was already assembled while Tony fiddled with the other.

“Teddy and I can,” Billy said, raising a hand. “Technically, I can enchant everyone in the room to fly, but Tommy and Loki do better groundwork.”

“Teddy can fly?” Instead of explaining, Teddy shifted into his scaly Hulk-like form from training and this time sprouted a pair of leathery, bat-like wings. There seemed to be no end to amazing Tony. “That’s fucking awesome.”

Teddy offered a sheepish grin as he paled and shrunk to his original size. Loki was fiddling with a hologram outside the blast doors, having gotten quickly accustomed to the UI set up and overall feel of the system. JARVIS didn’t seem to mind him either. Tommy leaned up against the doorframe, watching Tony strap rockets to himself.

“So when trouble rears its ugly head, how long is it gonna take you to put all this stuff on?” Tommy asked. They’d been sitting around for the better half of an hour, waiting for the demonstration. “Or are you just gonna walk around in this all the time?”

“I’m still working on that. Actually, JARVIS and I have been collaborating on a new system for him, the blueprints should be in a folder marked T1K-D,” Tony spoke to Loki, who found it easily. “Yeah that.”

“You mean the device that looks like a torturous machine?” Loki snorted.

“ _I assure you, my top priority is keeping the young sir alive,_ ” JARVIS commented.

It was a cylindrical device with two footholds at the bottom for Tony to stand in. The sides expanded into claws and tools of different sizes, pulling and prodding at the metal suit until it was effectively dismantled and a holographic Tony was out of the shell safe and sound. It was becoming apparent that Tony created things that could seemingly cause him bodily harm.

“If your rocket boots don’t blow up, I’ll take your word about that thing,” said Tommy.

“They’ll work, they just need a little adjusting right now,” Tony huffed, snapping something into place.

Once the boots were in place, Tony began pulling on the gauntlets, a quick procedure now, and finally hooked everything up to the arc reactor. He looked like a modern day Frankenstein’s monster. After a last few minor calibrations to the arc reactor, Tony looked up at everyone with a shit-eating grin.

“Okay, ready to fly. I’d recommend staying outside for this,” he shooed them away with his hands, and everyone joined Loki over by the holograms.

When the blast doors shut, Loki pulled up the live feed into the room, coupled with the audio. They watched as Tony got into position in the middle of the room, arms straight down and angled a little ways away from his thighs with his feet close together.

“Start power at five percent – ” he began prattling off numbers and calculations for JARVIS to record before putting the test in motion.

“Should he be wearing a helmet or something?” Tommy asked.

The rest of them turned around to look at him before looking back at the video feed. Yeah, maybe someone should’ve suggested that before locking him inside. A broken nose was one thing, brain damage was another. They all trusted Tony to have calculated that risk into everything though. Then again, this was the same man who wanted to fly around at the speed of sound in a human-shaped tin can.

“Maybe we should – ” Billy started.

Tony said something about turning the power source on and everything else happened too fast. He shot up and his arms flailed out in front of him, sending him up and flipping backwards face first into the wall behind him. He dropped down onto his back on the floor with a heavy thud.

“Holy shit!”

“Tony!”

The group rushed towards the blast doors, JARVIS opening them for the team to enter. Tony was moving, albeit sluggishly and still on his back, a good a sign as any that he was still, at least, alive.

“Stark!” Loki ran over, kneeling down next to him and Billy did the same on the other side. “Don’t move, something may be broken.”

Billy started mumbling a spell, hands over Tony and glowing a faded blue. His nose was starting to bleed and he had a nasty reddening mark on his forehead. His lips looked swollen, as if his teeth had clacked against them on impact.

“I did it…” Tony laughed weakly, grinning up at the two. His teeth were red, gums bleeding. “I flew.”

“Stop fidgeting.” Loki scolded.

“No, I did it, Loki, I flew!” The engineer laughed again, groaning as he sat up against the mages’ warnings. “I flew, I gotta do that again! JARVIS, what were the readings?”

“Cease  _moving_ ,” hissed Loki, pushing down on his chest.

“ _I suggest lowering the percentage of power used just a tad, sir. Otherwise, the suits readings were ninety-percent positive with minor calibrations needed. The readings are in the file._ ”

“I gotta do that again,” Tony pushed away Loki and Billy’s hands, getting up to his feet. His head felt dizzy, and rightfully so, but he waved his hands at everyone to leave again. “Holy shit, I flew.”

“You also left a pretty nasty face print on the wall.” Tommy snickered.

“At least let Billy and Loki fix you up.” Suggested Teddy. “And maybe wear a helmet?”

“No, no time gotta do that again. Power at one percent this time – no strike that, point five percent and – ”

Loki put his hand over Tony’s face, enveloping it in his lithe fingers. They were cold, and grew colder still as a spell flickered through them. Tony’s hot, progressively swelling face felt relief surge through, his gums no longer pulsating with pain and his nose ceased bleeding.

“Now, try it again,” Loki instructed, pulling his hand away. “And do not kill yourself, fool.”

Tony nodded deftly, positioning himself again. No one left the room this time, seeing as the tech hadn’t exploded before. Billy held his hands up, ready to catch Tony with his magic should he go flying out of control again. The rest of them sat back against the walls and watched quietly as he repeated his calculations to JARVIS, changing some numbers around before turning the power source on again. He flexed his hands a certain way, gently this time, and lifted off the ground in a short burst at first before he relaxed his grip to stay stable. He continued floating into the air until he was a good three feet above the ground where he shakily stabilized his flight pattern.

“Oh my god,” Tony smiled wide, face brightening. “Oh my  _god_.”

Billy lowered his hands as he looked up at Tony, grinning just as brightly as the engineer was. With a lazy wave of his hand, his sneakers left the floor as he floated up to meet Tony.

“You good?” He asked and Tony looked up at him, nodding. “Can you move? Like, forward I mean.”

“Yeah, yeah hold on, let me just – ”

“Think about how airplanes work.”

“Yeah I know.”

Tony resituated himself and soon he was flying more or less straight, following the slow pace Billy set for them. The mage flew backwards, keeping his eyes on Tony while the brunette followed with shaky arms and legs. Without the rest of the suit to help stabilize him, everything was stiff and awkward, but the main purpose of this had been for functionality. And no one in the room could say otherwise.

 

\- - -

 

“We should come up with codenames,” Billy said one evening while they were gathered around the dinner table in the kitchen, eating spaghetti.

“Shouldn’t we let the media come up with the codenames for us?” Tommy argued before greedily forcing a forkful of raveled noodles into his mouth.

“Oh please, have you seen their headlines? When my mother and old man died, there were headlines that said ‘A  _Stark_ Tragedy’. I’m not letting them give me a codename,” huffed Tony, playing with his overcooked spaghetti.

“There isn’t much in the way for codenames for me,” Loki shrugged. “Everyone will figure out that I am the brother of Thor. I’ve no need for an alias.”

“Do the rest of you even have costumes to hide your identities?”

Tony’s question was followed by an awkward silence that told him the obvious. Billy chewed on his spaghetti slowly, looking to Tommy who shrugged at him. They hadn’t thought that far ahead. Loki said it before, he didn’t need to hide himself, and Teddy didn’t really need one either – he turned into a green, scaly giant with claws and batwings. No one was going to recognize Teddy, but Billy, Tommy, and Tony needed to hide themselves behind a front. Tony had his metal suit, and even without a codename who would really believe that  _Tony Stark_  was flying around in that thing? The twins, however, needed something practical, something that made sense with their power.

“Can you magic some kind of suit up, Billy?” Tony asked, pointing his fork at the boy across the table.

“Yeah,” he said around a mouthful of food. Billy swallowed before continuing, “I can see what I can come up with for myself, but I dunno about Tommy.”

“I’ll handle Tommy’s suit. I can ask the company for something – ”

“Please let it be flattering,” complained Tommy.

“I know Stark Industries are kind of a company of dicks – no offense Tony – ” Teddy said, and Tony nodded in agreement. “ – but have you ever seen them do anything that isn’t in style?”

“True.”

“But not something that will catch too much attention,” Loki warned. He gave Tony a knowing look and the brunette offered up a goofy grin.

“You’ve been peeking through my blueprints again.”

“You have the worst color choice.”

“Don’t worry,” Tony waved a hand at him. “It’ll be fine, I’ll get something nice for Tommy to wear before everything is set and ready to go.”

Dinner lulled itself back into a comfortable silence, the television in the living room filtering a low noise of news throughout the house until Billy piped up again about codenames.

“We still need them.”

“So Loki is still Loki, right?” Tommy shrugged. Loki hummed, leaning back in his seat and throwing his head over the back of the chair. “Okay so… Billy, whaddya thinkin’?”

“How about Warlock?” Tony suggested instead, but Billy made a face.

“No, Warlocks have a bad connotation to them,” he said, chewing on the tip of his fork absently. “Should I copy off of mom?”

“No it’ll be obvious then,” said Tommy, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Because there are plenty of people running around with the ability to warp reality.”

“How about Wiccan?” Teddy suggested. “They’re the good kind of witches, right?”

“Yeah,” Billy pursed his lips in thought, face brightening as he thought better of the name. He looked over to Teddy, grinning. “Yeah, I like that! Okay, you next.”

“He kinda looks like the Hulk,” Tony said. “Like a baby Hulk, when he transforms.”

“Hulkling?” Tommy’s suggestion.

To which Loki replied dryly, “That’s terribly original, Thomas.”

“No, I think it suits me pretty well actually,” Teddy said, transforming as he spoke. “I don’t want anything that’ll link me to the Kree or the Skrull. If people think I’m a gamma radiation experiment gone wrong like Dr. Banner, then I’m fine with that. I’m afraid to see what will happen if S.H.I.E.L.D. finds out about my heritage.”

“ _You_  don’t even know much about your heritage,” said Billy.

“S.H.I.E.L.D. would find a way,” Loki added absently, and everyone seemed to silently agree. “I think Hulkling is suitable. And what about you?”

The question was for Tommy. He tapped his hands against the table’s top, eyes rolled up to the ceiling as he concentrated in thought. His uncle had already coined Quicksilver, and as he thought about using something similar, Tony blurted out a suggestion.

“Speed?”

“That sounds so lame.”

“It gets the point across though,” Billy chuckled, hiding his laughter behind a forkful of spaghetti.

“Awh c’mon! You two get something like Wiccan and Hulkling, and I get  _Speed_?” Tommy whined. “Seriously?”

Across the table, Loki laughed quietly, draped across the back of his chair still. It spread along the table and even Tommy caught the contagious laughter. Their dinner cooled on their plates as the table dissolved into excited conversation.

It was another week before Tony finished his first prototype model of his suit. The boots recalibrated, gloves remodeled, both with the finalized silver plating on them to cover the wires, unpainted. The torso similarly had been plated over, arc reactor in place with Plexiglas shielding it, and connected like a snuggly fit puzzle with the gauntlets and boots. The only thing left was the helmet, and Tony sat at his work table putting the last touches on it. The rest of the team was downstairs, exercising their powers with JARVIS monitoring them properly, but it wasn’t long before Loki came up in the private elevator to check up on him. Tony heard his footsteps, but didn’t acknowledge him until they stopped. He looked up, spotting a blossoming, or healing, bruise on the god-ling’s left cheek.

“What happened to your face?” Tony asked, leaning over the table with squinted eyes to get a better look.

“Team training exercise. I’m sure you’ll be amused if you look over the tape,” Loki mused, eyes focused on the helmet. “Are you almost finished?”

“Yeah, just a few more adjustments on the screens. I can’t get them to show up properly.  _But_ ,” Tony trailed off, fumbling with a clutter of things beneath his desk to find a box. He brought it up so Loki could see, opening the lid. “I did make us earpieces for radio contact.”

“Oh,” Loki raised his eyebrows, moving a hand to pluck one from the box. He looked over it carefully, but not scrutinizing so, before placing it back in. “These will be most useful. When you’re finished, come downstairs. I wish to spar with you in your completed suit.”

Tony didn’t get a chance to answer, not that he needed to, because Loki was gone in a muttered spell and a ghostly wind that smelled of ozone. He smiled dumbly and looked back to his helmet. Tony asked JARVIS for a maintenance check and the artificial intelligence complied. The helmet flared and separated, leaving enough room for Tony to fit his head inside. Once it fit, it sealed itself snuggly against the shape of his skull. A screen flickered to life, one of neutral color, with spinning lock-on gears and rectangular data readings in the corner. Code text flashed in front of his face, but Tony didn’t read it. It flashed green and the screen stabilized.

“JARVIS, bring up the battle screen please,” Tony asked. The screen slid away to the left and from the right came a pale red screen filled with “No Active Targets”  flashing in white.

The targeting system would need some work, that much was for sure. Aggressive targets were automatically considered enemies, and anything from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s database of enemies would also trigger it. He’d taken Loki out of pile this time before uploading the data to his suit. After a bit of training and a real life scenario, Tony would surely have to tweak it. For now, however, he left it alone and instead began pulling the rest of his suit on. The team was right, it was definitely clunky and took way too long to get on manually. He’d have to start on his new machine immediately. After everything fit in place snuggly, Tony took the elevator down to the second basement floor to take Loki up on his offer.

“You look like an advanced upgrade for the Tin Man,” Tommy snickered as Tony exited the elevator.

“The Chrome Man,” Teddy added.

“It’ll be painted,” Tony emphasized through the speakers. “And no comments on the colors, Loki.”

“Not a word,” he lifted his hands up in defensive, but his mocking grin made the gesture no less innocent. Loki beckoned for Tony to follow him into the training area.

Billy was in the center, breathing heavily after his session, in a costume Tony had never seen before. And they were making fun of  _his_?

“Is that your uniform?” Tony asked, flipping the faceplate of his helmet up.

Billy nodded, catching his breath. He’d opted for a dark midnight blue, almost black one piece with silver plated orbs dotting his chest and shoulders. His dark gloves were fingerless and ended with silver wrist guards. His ankles were covered in something similar, but bulkier and gold. Around his neck, a tattered red cape fluttered down towards his hips and on his head, a silver headband with feathered wings on either side.

“They look like Thor pajamas.” Tony said.

“That’s what I said,” came Tommy.

“I think it’s cute,” Teddy shrugged.

“As long as it doesn’t hinder him in battle, I think it will work to his advantage,” Loki said. “His powers are those of his mother, but dressing similar to an Asgardian would throw off the media. Are you all right?”

“I’m… fine,” Billy waved his hand, seemingly at Loki, but the costume phased away in a small, blue light. He was left in jeans, sneakers, and a plain T-shirt. “It’s all… yours.”

Once Billy was outside the doors, they shut, and the hum of the machines inside the room filled the air. Loki paced around Tony for a moment, overlooking his suit, not in a scrutinizing manner, but almost in an admirable way. The platinum shined almost glaringly and while Loki didn’t agree with the color scheme Tony had chosen, it would be better than leaving it like this.

“JARVIS,” Loki called out fondly. “Would you start us off with a medium difficulty with Doombots and a cityscape?”

“ _Yes’sir._ ”

“I thought we were going to fight each other?”

“I’ve changed my mind,” Loki grinned, stopping in front of Tony so he could see. “I want to see how well you fight now that your machine is finished.”

Tony shrugged and let the faceplate fall back into place. The screen lit up, a pale red, waiting for JARVIS to erect the arena. Loki fished his daggers out of seemingly no where and held ready, stance relaxed but no less intimidating. The streets formed, cars, pedestrians, small family owned shops and then skyscrapers upwards until their top floors were cut off by the ceiling. The Doombots spared no expense and swarmed the boys quickly from the alleyways and above. Tony took to the air immediately, awkwardly, but didn’t leave Loki’s airspace. The screen quickly targeted the first wave and Tony put his hands up to fire at them. His hovering was shaky, legs scrambling to hold a firm position while he aimed his sights down. He fired, and one of the two bots targeted went down. He steadied himself before firing again, one wayward blast caught a bot’s shoulder, and another went down. At this rate they would overwhelm them, Tony was too slow.

Below him, Loki used his tricks to separate himself from the oncoming crowd and assaulted a group of Doombots before scattering away again to assess the scene. They seemed to fall for his tricks only every so often, using their sensors to weed out the fakes. He made three illusions before skirting off to flank them, and only a handful believed them. Three turned to face the real Loki and assaulted him with lightning from their gauntlets. He dove into an alleyway for cover, feeling the simulated burn across his left shoulder after being grazed.

“I can’t find the real you!” He heard Tony shout over his speakers, and Loki spared a glance around the corner.

Tony was quickly getting a handle for flying and fighting at the same time, zipping past a group of Doombots and lighting them up with his repulsors. He’d been trying to keep an illusion covered, only to find that it was, indeed, an illusion when a Doombot shoved a mechanical hand through his translucent chest. Loki hadn’t thought about that, in all honesty. He cursed under his breath as another onslaught of lightning broke apart the holographic bricks keeping the flower shop up.

“Stark, I’m here!” He yelled.

Tony turned around in midair and saw, presumably, the real Loki cornered. He targeted the group of bots and from his shoulder plates he fired a short barrage of missiles. They hit their targets, allowing Loki to leave the alleyway. Tony tried to stay close to the real Loki this time, attempting to keep an eye on him as well as the enemies. Eventually he found himself lost with an illusion again, the real one getting himself into trouble once again. Tony flew up higher to try and find him, and Loki made a little hand motion to beckon him over. The Doombots were circling him, and while Loki was keeping up well enough, they’d close in on him in no time if Tony didn’t do something. He switched all power to his thrusters and made a B-line for Loki. Tony didn’t bother landing and instead awkwardly handled Loki into his arms before rising back into the air above the Doombots.

“They can follow us up here,” Loki advised. “And it isn’t that I’m ungrateful, but I don’t particularly feel safe up here with you – hey!”

“Quit fidgeting, I can’t stabilize!” Tony complained, manhandling the god-ling until he held him with one arm at the bend of his knees and the other supporting his back. “I won’t drop you, relax.”

“You’ve only flown a handful of times!”

The Doombots were taking to the air now, attempting to swarm them again. Tony flew up and around, banking between buildings.

“That’s what this training is for,” Tony said. “For practice.”

“Preferably without you carrying me as if I were some – go right at the next corner!”

Tony almost missed it and made a wide turn to go back. The bots funneled after them, like a swarm of angry bees. Loki moved to peer above Tony’s shoulder, narrowing his eyes at the opponents. Determined little vermin.

“I’ve got an idea,” said Loki. “Go between those two buildings. Quickly!”

“That’s a dead end though.”

“Just do it!”

Tony complied, dodging wayward attacks when he could to go where Loki had instructed. He looked down at the man in his arms, and he was mumbling, probably a spell, with glowing green hands. They passed between the two buildings, and Tony slowed to a hovering stop as they reached one of the walls of the training area. A dead end, just like he’d said.

“Loki…” Tony looked down at him again. He looked panicked, paled, like he couldn’t get the spell to do as he wanted. He kept quiet so that he wouldn’t interrupt his concentration, but it didn’t seem to matter. The spell from his palms faded and Loki gasped, a pained sound.

JARVIS shut the training protocol down before the Doombot swarm slammed into Tony and Loki, reporting that they’d lasted for nineteen minutes and twenty-seven point four three seconds.

“Not too shabby!” Tony sounded thrilled, but Loki looked less than excited. “What’s the matter?”

He looked up at Tony, hair askew and windswept, before faking a cheeky, close-mouthed grin and shaking his head. “It’s nothing. Now may I please put my feet on solid ground again?”

“Do you complain this much when Billy levitates you?”

“I’ve a thing about people carrying me through the air. It’s almost never pleasant.” Loki clicked his tongue.

Tony lowered them until his own feet touched the ground before placing Loki down afterwards. The cityscape had fizzled away and the blast doors were open, letting the rest of the team in. They praised them for a job well done, being that it was Tony’s first time in full force. Billy wanted to try tag-teaming with Tony next, but only after they’d eaten; the team was famished after a day of working. Teddy offered to make this Mediterranean dish his mom was pretty keen on making and no one said otherwise. They all headed to the elevator, but Loki held back, looking at the computer screens.

“You coming?” Tony called back over his shoulder, pausing to wait for an answer.

Loki hesitated, narrowed his eyes at the monitors before thinking better of it. “I am.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, questions, concerns, cookies - feel free to leave them below!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: March 17


	7. the drought cometh

JARVIS had really grown to love Tony’s new friends, as much as any artificial system could feel such an emotion. They weren’t Tony’s godfather, Obadiah Stane, and they weren’t the late master of the house’s military friends. They were Tony’s, and there was something particularly special about them. He was, by extension of Tony, a part of their little team. Billy and Teddy frequented little games with him, chess and battle ship and ping pong. He liked to join in on teasing Tommy whenever the group poked fun at him for whatever reason. They were children, the lot of them, and JARVIS, just as the real Jarvis would’ve done, looked after them like a wayward parent. He looked forward to when Tony got around to wiring him throughout the entire house, and not just the basement levels.

Loki intrigued him the most as he spent the most time with him. There would be nights where, when JARVIS quietly watched Tony tinker away, he would also hold conversations on the second floor with Loki. He’d question him about Tony, and JARVIS would answer to the best of his abilities as to not give away too much about the young master, but enough that would satisfy the god-ling’s curiosity. Sometimes Loki would sit quietly and review the videos of the training sessions that had accounted earlier in the day, and ask JARVIS to take notes for him. Tonight, however, Loki did not say a word as he materialized into the second floor basement and walked briskly to the monitors. He seemed tense, preoccupied with a silent thought as he approached them.

The holographic screens lit up as his fingers pressed against the air. Loki moved through the regular stack of file folders, and JARVIS assumed he was looking for the training records. He said so, aloud, that all Loki needed to do was ask.

“I’ve no need for those tonight,” Loki said curtly, continuing his quick maneuvers through the computer.

JARVIS settled into a silence then, watching Loki search for his destination. His brows furrowed, mumbling about how he’d seen Tony take this route once before, but now he couldn’t quite remember where.

“ _What is it that you are looking for, young sir?_ ” JARVIS asked.

Loki hesitated a moment, pausing his motions and biting his lower lip. He looked up at the ceiling, a habitual movement whenever he spoke to JARVIS. “The S.H.I.E.L.D. database Mr. Stark uses to fuel our training experience.”

Without another word, the screens in front of Loki moved on their own. The current folders he’d been searching through closed, and JARVIS took him to another one, opening subfolders until he reached one folder in specific labeled “S.H.I.E.L.D. DB” in capitol letters. It sat in the middle of the screen, enlarged to show that it was that file in particular he’d been looking for.

“Thank you JARVIS,” said Loki quietly, bringing a finger up to poke the file open.

It exploded into an array of many smaller folders, all labeled accordingly and in alphabetical order. Loki scrolled through them innocently enough, the translucent blue light painting his face softly. His eyes were narrowed, shoulders tense as he continued through, looking for one in particular. Locksmith, Locus, Lodestone, and then there it was, Loki. He stopped scrolling and simply stared at the folder. He knew better than to open it, which was why so many things had happened in the past; he knew better and he did it anyway. Loki clenched his fists, then relaxed his fingers before curling them into his palm again. He reached up to the hologram, lowered his hand, put it back up and extended a finger before snatching his hand back.

“ _If it is of any consolation, young sir, Mr. Stark has locked that folder to anyone but himself_.”

“Damn!” Loki slammed his hands on the counter. He let out a frustrated sigh, slumping further towards the table until his forehead rested on the cool surface.

The room fell silent again, this time for a handful of minutes before JARVIS spoke up.

“ _May I ask why you wish entry to your file?_ ”

Loki half-laughed as he answer, “Well, I figured since Thor refuses to tell me anything of my past life, then Mr. Stark would have the information I seek.”

“ _Is that your reasoning for allowing him on the team?_ ” JARVIS sounded as neutral as ever, but the silence that followed after was stifling.

Loki pulled himself up off the counter and looked up at the monitors, at his name beneath the file folder. “Not entirely, no. It did cross my mind more often than not that if Mr. Stark proved bored enough to hack into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s database once that he would do so again, even if I had to ask. I could use this to my advantage to know of myself, but it seems he, too, has barred me from it.”

“ _I assure you, Mr. Stark did so with you in mind._ ”

“Oh?” Loki sneered. “How thoughtful.”

He slumped down in the plush stool behind him, making an irate face as he asked JARVIS for the training records. Yesterday, he and Tony had tag-teamed, Loki’s first tag-team since they’d been given the training protocol system to work with. They hadn’t done well, but it hadn’t been a train wreck either. Tony was still learning and Loki, he was used to doing things by himself. That had proved dangerous when the team had tried fighting together as one before Tony had finished his suit, leaving Loki with a nasty bruise on his face courtesy of Teddy. He’d been at the Hulking’s flank and not announced it, earning him an elbow to the face. With Tony as a predominantly aerial fighter, he hadn’t needed to worry about calling out his position until he started with his tricks. Loki scoffed quietly to himself, wrapped up in the video splayed across the monitors from different angles. Illusions were seemingly the only thing he could do now.

The elevator in the back dinged softly.

“ _I’ve got an idea. Go between those two buildings. Quickly!_ ”

“ _That’s a dead end though._ ”

“ _Just do it!_ ”

Tony maneuvered them sloppily around a group of Doombots and buildings, doing as Loki had instructed. Loki watched as, in the video, he attempted with a visual desperation a spell he’d not attempted in a long while. It hadn’t been successful then either. The spell faded from his hands and JARVIS immediately turned the demonstration off to save them from being sandwiched between the wall and the swarm of Doombots. Loki sighed, bringing his feet up on the chair and resting his head against his knees.

“I looked about as graceful as a blimp up there, didn’t I?” Tony said, about three feet behind Loki, who effectively stumbled off the stool and almost into the desk in surprise. Tony laughed.

“How – How long have you been standing there?” Loki breathed, unable to hide his surprise. Not many could sneak up on him like that.

“About halfway through the video, relax.” Tony said, rounding the table so he could stand next to Loki. He quirked an eyebrow at him, “Why, have you been doing something you probably shouldn’t be?”

“What could I possibly be doing by that context, Mr. Stark?” Loki offered him a grin, carding his fingers through his hair only to have a handful of strands flutter forward.

“Isn’t it in your nature to be doing something you aren’t suppose to?” He quipped before looking back up at the video monitors. “Don’t be so disappointed, we did well.”

“I cannot falter as I did in real battle,” Loki said, voice falling.

“I don’t think New York City has a giant wall blocking us from the rest of Fifth Avenue,” said Tony teasingly. “Besides, that’s what practice is for. I’m sure Billy can help.”

“Billy has the exact opposite problem I have.” He sighed. “Too much power, too little experience. I failed because I tried to use a spell beyond my reach, not because I didn’t know how to control it.”

“So you think S.H.I.E.L.D.’s database will give you an answer?” Tony raised his eyebrows, walking around the desk and behind the holograms.

“In theory, ye – oh.” Loki looked up at Tony, expression smug and knowing. He licked his lips and looked up at the ceiling. Tattletale. “Yes.”

“Well, I disagree.”

“Well, I don’t believe it is your place to disagree or agree on this matter,” Loki straightened up, narrowing his eyes at Tony. “It is something that involves myself and myself alone.”

“I don’t think it involves you at all,” Tony said. From the other side of the monitors he could see Loki’s expression darken. He moved his hand up to play with the monitors. “I think I said this before, but looking at past you shouldn’t mean anything. It isn’t you anymore, isn’t that what reincarnation is?”

“Tell that to those who still believe Loki is Loki, no matter the form.”

“Loki is whoever you want him to be now,” said Tony, bringing the desktop back up. He moved to a familiar folder and popped it open, following a specific route. “You have to make those people believe that. Thor does.”

“Thor does not want me to do  _this_ ,” he angrily gestured at the air.

“Yes he does,” Tony stopped working at the monitor to look at Loki. “He just doesn’t want you to get hurt.”

Loki blinked at him, taken aback. “And how would you know this?”

The brunette pressed his lips together, staring through the translucent screens to Loki. “Because… as your older brother, his job is to look after you. I’m sure he wants old Loki back just as much as everyone else does – not at all. But if you think this holds the answer to your problem,” Tony double tapped the screen to show the exposed folders of all the villains S.H.I.E.L.D. had to offer in their database. “I won’t stop you.”

Loki stood quiet, looking not at the folder with his name on it, but through it, at Tony. His hands were clenched at his sides, shoulders tense again. He made no movement to touch the folder.

“It isn’t only the question of power to which I seek,” he said. “I want to know why everyone hates me so.”

“Because you haven’t given them reason to think otherwise.”

For the umpteenth time that night, the room filled with silence. Heavy at first, Tony was sure the other would lunge across the counter to throttle him, but Loki’s expression lightened and his stance relaxed. With fingers unfurled, he touched the screen only to close the folder, leaving them bathed in a soft blue light in the darkness. Neither of them said anything after that for a long while, even after Tony moved back around the table to stand next to Loki. He nudged the young god with his shoulder, and when Loki looked over at him he grinned, wide and dumb. It reminded Loki of the way Thor would grin at him; a contagious expression. Loki couldn’t help the small smile that spread across his face as he looked away, letting his hair hide his face.

“You wanna practice?” Asked the engineer.

“It’s late.” Loki moved his hair out of his eyes.

“So?” Tony stepped away from the other and started towards the training area. “C’mon, just a little.”

“Without your suit?”

“Sure, it’ll help. Teach me some more of your Asgardian butt-kicking.”

Loki laughed at that, full and low, but didn’t say no.

The rest of the week continued smoothly to the weekend. The boys trained, Tony tinkered, they acted like young adults in their downtime, and when business came to business they would watch the news to see if any small crimes were happening. Dr. Doom tried to assault the city again and was thwarted by Luke Cage’s team who just happened to be in the area. Ms. Marvel was prompted for a promotion as Captain Marvel at a press conference, after which Director Fury made a statement about the frequenting attacks made by Dr. Doom himself.

“That guy just doesn’t know when to quit,” Tony huffed, leaning back on the couch as he stirred his morning coffee.

“Maybe he’s trying to court mom again,” Tommy snickered and Billy threw a pillow at him. “I was kidding!”

“Hey, I’m going out,” Teddy announced as he made his way down the stairs. He’d shape shifted into his thinner self again, hair brushed back and ears lacking in their piercings. “Does anyone want anything?”

“Where are you going?” Billy asked, looking over the couch.

“To see Blake and maybe stop by the convenience store.”

“I’ll go with you,” Tony volunteered, pushing himself off the couch. His coffee was forgotten on the end table. “I need to get some fresh air anyway.”

“You two won’t be going out through that front door,” Loki reminded through a mouthful of apple. “I’ll accompany you.”

“Bring us back those protein snack things you got last time,” Tommy said, flopping himself over the couch’s back. “I’m out.”

“Already?” Teddy sighed.

“I burn through them too quickly,” he huffed. “I eat like five before we’re done training.”

“What are you gonna do in the middle of a bank robbery or something?” Billy asked, laughing under his breath. “Is Tony going to have to request a suit with a fanny pack so you can carry food around when you get hungry?”

Tommy threw the pillow back at Billy, but the mage laughed all the same.

“Are you two going to destroy the house while we’re gone?” Loki asked, voice feminine to match his female body. He almost looked like that reporter, minus the glasses, Tony realized. “Because I’d actually like to be there for that when it happens, you know.”

“Just what I need; a chaos god, a reality warper, and a speedster wrecking my house,” Tony shook his head.

“That sounds like the beginning of a bad joke.” Teddy chuckled behind them. “Come on, let’s get going before it gets too late.”

Loki hummed and turned back around to Teddy and Tony, holding out his hands to each of them. They each took one and took hold of the other’s before Loki spoke the word Tony still couldn’t make out. He knew, at least by now, that it wasn’t English. The world spun, Tony’s weight fluctuated between that of a weightlessness and that of a ten ton bowling ball before stopping abruptly into an alleyway about a block from his mansion.

“Oh… fuck,” Tony groaned, using the graffiti stained wall as leverage. “Still not used to that.”

“You better,” Loki pursed his lipstick caked lips together. “Come on, I don’t wish to attract attention.”

“You’re gonna be walking around the city with me, that’ll attract quite a bit of attention. Trust me,” Tony grinned up at him as he tried to contain his breakfast. It seemed to settle, for now.

Loki quirked his head to one side, as if he wasn’t entirely sure what that meant, but he would soon. They exited the alleyway discreetly, blending in to the rest of the crowded streets. It was disgustingly hot outside, as New York summers were, with a blanket of humidity covering the roads. There was almost a collective sigh of relief when the wind blew through the avenues like a wind tunnel, gracing its commuters with a brief relief of cool air before the heat settled once more. Despite it all, reporters from the Bugle and less infamous corporations stood by, waiting for the next bit of juicy gossip to come walking by. And it did, in three inch heels and a dark green dress strutting next to Tony Stark and a scrawny blonde.

“Mr. Stark!” They cried, scrambling from their outdoor tables at a café. “Mr. Stark!”

“Is this the attention you were speaking of?” Loki asked, looking back over his shoulder.

“Don’t look back!” Tony pressed, picking up the pace.

“Mr. Stark!” They had their cameras out, recorders on, and questions on the tips of their tongues. “You haven’t been seen out lately, are you still mourning the death of your parents?”

“Are you working on an agenda for Stark Industries?”

“Rumor has it you’re going to be working closely with – ”

“We’ve heard that you’ll be severing partnerships with – ”

“Sources say that – ”

“Is that your girlfriend, Mr. Stark?”

That got Loki’s attention, much to Tony’s dismay, and he turned around quite briskly at the reporters. Tony grabbed his wrist and tugged gently to let him know that ignoring them was their best course of action. Loki didn’t seem to get the hint. Instead he tugged back, grabbing Tony’s hand and plastering a wicked smile across his face, all teeth and lacking in genuine friendliness.

“Well of course,” Loki feigned a giggle that definitely didn’t sit correctly. He nudged Tony with his shoulder, clearing his throat quietly as he wormed his hand out of Tony’s and up his back to grab the base of his neck. He leaned in closer, and Tony moved his hand around his waist indiscreetly. “Is he not the most  _delectable_  man in this city?”

Before the reporters could burst with their questions that twinkled in their eyes, Loki pressed his lips to the corner of Tony’s mouth. Behind them, Teddy let out a rather loud snort, covering his smile with his hand. Tony was as stiff as a board, unmoving and gripping Loki’s waist as if it were a lifeline. He felt the heat rise into his face, uncomfortable and melding with the already too hot for June weather. The reporters trampled over each other’s words, firing questions about where he met this foreigner, how they’d met, what her name was. In an effort to save them, Teddy pointed above their heads and feigned surprise.

“Look, Spiderman!” He shouted, and like a swarm the reporters turned to look where Teddy had pointed. “You just missed him, it looked like he was going towards Central Park!”

Like that, their attention flipped from gossip to actual news as they scrambled to pick up their tote bags from their chairs and ran to catch a glimpse of the Avengers’ very own, some of them hailing cabs. When they were out of sight, Loki leaned away from Tony to look behind him, pouting at Teddy.

“I was having fun.”

“Tony looks like he’s about to implode,” Teddy chuckled.

Loki looked down at Tony, face a prominent red. As if it weren’t painfully obvious, Loki grinned sharply and leaned closer to his face. “Were you not enjoying that?”

“Uhm,” Tony barely managed. “Not that I wasn’t, I just didn’t expect you to… you know, go along with it. I expected you to murder someone. You did say you didn’t want to attract attention.”

“Murder a group of reporters when we’re striving for the exact opposite?” Loki quirked an eyebrow. “Please, that was the perfect opportunity to have a little fun with Thor.”

“Thor?”

“I thought it kind of me to give him a little update on what I’ve been up to is all,” Loki grinned. “Now, if you’ll release my hip?”

 

\- - -

 

Pietro lazily lounged across the couch in the living room, feet propped up on the armrest despite Wanda’s not-so subtle looks as she passed by. She glanced at him and cleared her throat as she made her way to the kitchen with Thor, who had just arrived, but her brother paid no mind.

“So what is this, exactly?” She asked, sitting on the edge of the kitchen table.

Thor had handed her a manila folder, thick with the girth of files, before he’d even made it into their suite. Judging by the expression on his face, whatever it was couldn’t be good. He let Wanda sift through the papers, watched as her expression switched from one of curiosity to one of anger.

“A transfer?” She looked up at Thor, eyes burning.

“No, not a transfer,” he corrected. “Not permanently anyway. The West Coast team is in need of our services at present.”

“Let me guess, Rogers, Banner, and Pietro are staying here?” Thor nodded and Wanda slapped the folder onto the table. “They’re up to something.”

“Are they not always?”

“I’m not going, they can get Dr. Strange to go in my place,” Wanda said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Our place is here, so we can watch over the children.”

“That is precisely why they wish us to be away,” said Thor, looking down. “We’ve heard nothing of them, and S.H.I.E.L.D. knows less than we do. What do they believe to accomplish without our presence I know not, but I agree with you. Our place is here.”

Wanda nodded and placed a hand on the folder. If this was how S.H.I.E.L.D. was going to play, they were going to have to try harder than a transfer to lure them away. Not once had they called either Wanda or Thor to have a meeting about the children since she’d told them Tony’s presence had disappeared. As far as Fury was concerned, they knew about as much as S.H.I.E.L.D. knew.

“I’ll talk to them about it today, demand a conference with Director Fury,” Wanda said, turning her attention to Thor. “Would you care to join?”

Thor nodded and opened his mouth to say more when Pietro called him from the other room.

“Thor! Your little brother’s on the T.V.!” He called, moving to an upright position to grab the remote. He turned the television volume up louder. When Thor and Wanda entered the room, he added, “I think Teddy’s there too, and that Stark kid.”

“ _A half hour ago, our news crew caught Tony Stark out on the street walking with two others. We flocked to inquire about his future plans for Stark Industries, but it seemed his lovely lady friend stole the show._ ” The anchorwoman on the television summarized briefly before switching to the video footage.

“Are you sure that’s Loki?” Wanda asked.

Loki turned around to greet the cameras, hanging himself against Tony as he spoke with the group of reporters. If his all too familiar choice of feminine attire didn’t give it away, the look he flashed the cameras after he planted a kiss on Tony’s cheek definitely did. Pietro laughed loudly and Wanda tried to hide a smile behind her hand, looking to Thor who didn’t seem at all surprised.

“Aye… that is Loki.”

They shared another laugh, watching as Tony’s face grew from an overheated flush to an embarrassed red. He clearly hadn’t expected that, and Loki looked ready to embarrass him further if Teddy hadn’t pointed up at the imaginary Spiderman. Peter was off with Steve Rogers for some training. The news story continued and Wanda’s quiet laughter died as a realization hit her.

“They were on the news,” she said, touching Thor’s arm to grab his attention. “Damn it, they were on the news! S.H.I.E.L.D.’s going to see that.”

Thor asked Wanda to take them to S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, but they wouldn’t get an audience with Director Fury until after he’d been informed of the news report. He called it in to Barton, still staking out the comic book store.

 

\- - -

 

“Why didn’t you just transport us to the damned comic shop instead of a block outside my house?” Tony complained, reveling in the small gust of wind before it faded into the heavy heat. “It’s fucking hot.”

“You’re the one who said you needed fresh air,” said Teddy.

“This isn’t fresh air, this is disgusting.”

“We’re almost there anyway, so relax,” Teddy rounded the next corner, another brilliant breeze wafting through the avenue like a wind tunnel. It disappeared after a while and left their shirts and dress clinging to them uncomfortably. “It’s right up here. I’ll go ahead, meet you inside!”

Tony waved him down, stopping in his tracks before turning around to see Loki, strolling easily along as he sucked lazily at a straw. In his hands was, to no one’s surprise, a milkshake after he’d complained he needed something to cool him down.

“You comin’, Princess?” Tony drawled. Loki only hummed around the straw. “Would it kill you to share?”

“You should have bought one along with mine when we were at the soft serve establishment,” Loki said, eyeing Tony out of his peripheral as soon as he caught up with him.

“You were attracting so much attention, I just wanted to get out as soon as possible,” Tony rolled his eyes, head shaking.

“I didn’t see the problem.”

“You said, and I quote, the girlfriend of Anthony Stark demands the best milkshake this establishment has to offer.”

Loki slurped loudly at his dessert. “This is quite a fulfilling milkshake, it worked. I fail to understand why you’re single if this is the service one gets.”

Tony shook his head again, but said nothing else about it. It was nice to see Loki like this, he acted younger, more mischievous and less mission oriented like he did back at the mansion. It almost left Tony unguarded.

Across the street, on the roof of a rundown store that had been out of business for quite a while, Clint Barton followed Tony Stark and Loki down the sidewalk through a pair of binoculars. Every so often, Loki would stop, to Tony’s displeasure, and window shop eagerly, smudging his hand against the glass as he spoke. They were almost at the comic book shop, just three more stores. Clint made a hand signal to the rooftop across the way, on top of a clothing store still in business.

“I have a confirmed visual on Tony Stark,” the bowman radioed in. “Those suspected to be Theodore Altman and Loki Laufeyson are with him.”

Radio silenced filled the communication device until static fizzled in. “ _Get a tracking device on Stark._ ”

“Yes’sir.” Clint affirmed, pulling up his binoculars again.

Teddy came out of the comic book shop empty-handed and headed for the payphone across the street. Tony and Loki didn’t seem to notice as the young God was eyeing an antiques store while the brunette tried to pry him away.

“Just a peek,” Loki promised with a grin that stated otherwise. He batted his eyelashes mockingly at Tony. “For your girlfriend?”

“That only works for the reporters, sweetheart,” Tony crossed his arms over his chest.

Loki pouted and the other laughed. “You’re ruining my fun.” He smirked nonetheless, and caught sight of Teddy in the phone booth behind Tony. “What is Teddy doing?”

“Hm?” Tony turned around. “Oh my god, is that a pay phone?”

“What’s a pay phone?”

“Never mind,” he shook his head, walking over to the edge of the sidewalk. “I’ll go see what’s up.”

Loki nodded, turning back to the antiques store. Tony made sure the streets were clear before darting across, and Barton retreated behind an out of service air conditioning unit. The engineer tapped on the window of the phone booth, waving to Teddy when he glanced up at him. Teddy held up a hand before concluding his phone call and hanging up.

“We’ve got cellphones for a reason, you know,” Tony jested lightly.

“They can be tracked,” Teddy said seriously, looking up across the street to Loki. “I had to call Blake’s house.”

“Isn’t he suppose to work today?”

“Yeah, and the other store clerk said he was in yesterday, but he hadn’t arrived today. I just called his house,” the blonde faced Tony. “He didn’t come home after his shift last night.”

On the other side of the street, Loki hummed to himself quietly, happily. He slurped at the rest of his milkshake through the straw loudly, making a gurgling bubbly noise to signal that he was almost finished with it. No matter, something new caught his widened eyes. The sale sign in the window of the antique store glared at him, pressured him to go inside. He really wanted to a looksee at least, they had time. Loki turned on his heel, opened his mouth to address the boys across the street but something in his peripheral caught his attention. The reflection from the abandoned store windows showed a figure on the antiques store roof, motioning something with his hands. Loki turned his gaze upwards and caught the shining refracting of a scope as it retreated behind the air conditioning unit. Loki began to walk briskly towards the comic book shop.

“You two, come on!” Loki shouted calmly, eyes trained on the building’s roof. “We don’t have all day.”

Tony stopped talking when he heard Loki, turning to look at him over his shoulder. “Oh, now he’s in a hurry.”

“Come on, we need to let him know Blake’s missing,” Teddy said.

As they crossed the street, the scope came back into view as did the weapon attached to it and the person aiming. The movement was quick, precise, and the arrow lobbed from the bow sailed through the air.

“Stark!” Loki yelled, dropping his empty glass. He waved his hand, procuring a dagger. With a dangerous speed, Loki spun and threw it at the assailant before the glass shattered at his feet.

Both Tony and Teddy stopped to look to where Loki was attacking, and Teddy caught sight of the arrow. He threw himself around Tony, covering him as he grew in size and changed in color. His back became scaly and rough, and when the arrow hit it, the tip broke and the arrow fluttered to the ground. Without wasting a moment, Teddy picked up Tony and ran them both inside the book store. Loki covered them, throwing his daggers until one was shot from his hand before it could leave it. The shot was fired from his right, and Loki didn’t take the time to look and see the two men running from the alleyways, dressed in black. Instead he opted to follow Teddy and Tony, shifting back into a male as he reached the door. Once inside the store, he looked around, scanning the faces of the panicking shoppers to find familiar ones.

“Teddy!”

“Here!” Teddy’s voice came from the back room, the door slightly ajar.

Another shot was fired, a warning graze near Loki’s head. He ran for cover, leaping over the counter to reach the store room, and pushed past Teddy before he shut the door behind them.

“What the hell?” Tony breathed behind Teddy. “Who was that?”

“S.H.I.E.L.D. if I had to guess,” Loki mused, grabbing Tony by the wrist. He put his hand on Teddy’s arm, murmuring a spell. This time Tony could make out the word as an ancient tongue, lost to humans but still fresh on Loki’s lips.

The structure around them broke apart and vanished, only to be replaced by the familiarity of Tony’s living room. Tommy and Billy were no where to be found, the television off and their surroundings quiet save for the labored breathing of the three young adults.

“How did they find us?” Tony asked.

“I think they were waiting for us,” Teddy said, shrinking back down to his normal self. “And I think they might have Blake.”

“What?” Loki growled.

“When I went in, the other store clerk said he hadn’t been in, and when I called his house his mom said that he hadn’t come home after his shift yesterday,” he explained. “I think they’ve been waiting for us to come back.”

“Why take your friend then? It doesn’t make sense.” Said Tony.

“They think he might know something,” Loki answered. “Where we are, what we’re doing.”

“Would he squeal?” Both Tony and Loki looked up at Teddy, who shrugged. “Great.”

“He doesn’t know we’re here though, at your place,” Teddy offered.

“Yes, but now they know Mr. Stark is affiliated with us,” Loki motioned angrily to Tony. “They will be looking into him, watching his every move. You cannot go out anymore.”

“Uhm, I can’t not go out. I’ll be expected to go to meetings and outings. If I suddenly disappear from the media, it’ll look more suspicious,” Tony said. “I’ll just be careful where I go, and when I do, that’s all.”

Loki narrowed his eyes at Tony, evening out his breathing by taking deep breathes, willing his hands to unclench and his body to relax. They hadn’t accounted for S.H.I.E.L.D. seeing through their disguises, and now not only did they know that but that they had Tony Stark as an ally.

“Make sure your machines are ready, Mr. Stark,” Loki advised, raising his chin. “If S.H.I.E.L.D. wishes to see us, then we mustn’t disappoint. Teddy, tell the others to make ready as well.”

“For what?”

“Why, our debut, of course.”

 

\- - -

 

“What is the meaning of this?” Wanda shouted, shoving open the door to Director Fury’s office. Thor and Pietro were on her heels, as well as a poor staff man attempting to calm her down.

“Ms. Maximoff, please…” he offered.

“It’s all right,” Fury said, waving a hand to him. He turned his attention up to Wanda. “Is there something I can help you with?”

“I’d like an explanation as to  _why_  you saw fit to  _assault_  the children on the street today,” she said curtly, stopping at his desk. The other two framed her, two steps behind, Thor looking vexed.

“We were planning on equipping Mr. Stark with a tracking device so that we could learn of their location,” Fury explained simply. “It was only after Loki began assaulting my agents with weapons did we see fit to defend ourselves.”

“Is that what you’re calling it?”

“Do you have a problem with the way I run this show, Ms. Maximoff?”

Wanda opened her mouth to say something nasty, inappropriate, but she stayed herself. She took in a deep breath, closed her eyes to center herself.

“You are making our plan difficult, Director,” she said, irritation still dripping off her words.

“Your plan is too complicated,” he countered. “If you would have just let me and my team rush them, like I had said in the first place – ”

“They would have learned nothing and grown to hate us further,” Thor interrupted. “Your actions today have done nothing but pushed them away.”

“Is that the way you run your show,” Wanda said, tossing the manila folder on Fury’s desk. “By pushing people away?”

“This, right here,” Fury motioned to the room. “Is the exact reason why I asked for this arrangement to be made. It isn’t permanent, only until we can get the group situated. You’re compromised, you have emotional attachments to this mission, and it’s clouding your judgment. Tony Stark has done nothing to help or inform us, our plant is a dud.”

A knock came from where the door had been left open, and Barton stood in it. “May I interrupt?”

“Please,” Fury paused before adding, “With good news, I presume.”

Clint pressed his lips together, looking away. “Good news and bad.” He straightened himself up, walking over to the group. “The bug didn’t land, Theodore protected Stark. But I just got word from Natasha – she got Blake to sing.”

“And?”

“We’ve got a location and a team gathering to head to it.”

“I’m going with you,” Fury said, rounding his desk.

“As are we,” Wanda stated firmly, not waiting to hear the affirmation or decline.

Three black vans with heavily tinted windows drove through the city streets to the edge of their jurisdiction. The abandoned buildings were piled high, rotting and crumbling under summer sunset. Above them, the clouds began to roll in, the smell of rain thickly coating the humid air. As the vans screeched to a halt, teams flooded out from them, each directing themselves towards a different set of buildings. Their guns were at their sides, safety off, flashlights on. Director Fury, Wanda, Thor, and Pietro followed Romanov’s team into the largest of the buildings, moving quickly and quietly. But they found nothing but empty rooms full of dust and decay, just as Wanda and Thor knew.

“ _No sign of them, sir,_ ” Barton radioed over the com. “ _They’re gone._ ”

Fury’s gloved hand tightened around his gun, jaw clenching and eye narrowed. “I want around the clock surveillance on Tony Stark. I want his files on my desk before we return to headquarters.”

“Yes’sir.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions, comments, concerns, constructive criticism, cookies - feel free to leave them below!
> 
> Also happy St. Patricks Day!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: March 24


	8. the rain comes forth

It started when JARVIS called the team up from training, emphasizing that it was dire and urgent that they go to the first basement level, Tony’s lab. Loki teleported immediately, and Tommy rushed to the elevator, missing Billy’s teleportation as well as he took Teddy by the hand. Loki arrived first and was met with yelling, mostly swearing, and JARVIS’s attempt at a calming tone. The air smelled of fried circuits and stung his eyes. Behind him, Teddy and Billy appeared in a blue light. They called out for Tony, who shouted back another swear in return. They found him in the garage near his showcase of cars inside a machine that looked very near torturous. The elevator dinged and Tommy finally arrived.

“We thought you were dead!” Billy exclaimed, running his fingers through his hair.

“At least that’s what JARVIS made it sound like,” Teddy added. “Or in the process of it.”

Tony looked at the group, expressions ranging from perplexed – Billy – to amused – Tommy. He hung upside down, metal claws and screwdrivers and wrenches holding him up, some with their mouths full of Tony’s metal suit. Some of them were malfunctioning, twitching and sparking and smelling distantly like an explosion. Tony donned one full leg up to his thigh and the front part of his chest piece, his arms were still clad in armor and being pulled in awkward directions. His faceplate had long since been pulled away, it had been the only thing that came off with ease. So far, the machine Tony invented to easily put his suit on and take it off only worked one way; on. It wasn’t an entire failure but everyone would’ve liked the machine to not disassemble Tony in the process of removing the suit.

“If I hear one I told you so, I probably deserve it, but I’d appreciate hearing it after I’m out of this death machine,” Tony let out a pained gasp as his arm twisted further than necessary. “JARVIS!”

“ _I am trying to override the system as we speak sir,_ ” the A.I. replied with a deceptively calm tone.

The system of metallic tools surrounding Tony soon relaxed, relieving him of being pulled in uncomfortable directions, but still held him in the air, upside down, half-clad in his armor. It took about another hour of talking Loki and Teddy through overriding the programming process manually to free Tony from his armor. JARVIS scanned the program, initializing the plenty of problems that riddled the system, and filed them neatly away in a folder Tony would look over later.

“So good news is this baby can put me in the suit in less than a minute, no problem,” Tony said, stretching his arm over his head in an effort to pop a joint. He sighed as it cracked loudly, slumping over his workbench. “Bad news is it does that when I try to get it off.”

“Well at least the important step is in motion,” said Loki, folding his arms over his chest. “You can get it on in a timely manner. We’ll deal with peeling it off when the time comes.”

It had been three days since the incident with S.H.I.E.L.D. and the team had taken mighty precautions to keeping themselves unknown. Tony split his time between wiring JARVIS through the entire house, as well as outside surveillance, and fixing the machine that was, in theory, supposed to seamlessly equip Tony with his suit quickly as well as taking it off. So far, aside from the recent mishap, everything worked smoothly. When they weren’t training, the rest of the team was scouring news reports, searching for something small, but attention grabbing for their debut.

It wouldn’t be until one Friday evening that the team was given their chance. The setting sun painted the New York skyline with streaks of gold and orange while its opposing horizon lurked in midnight blue shadows. The light filtered into the kitchen, where Tony sat with Teddy and Billy, discussing flight patterns and aerial techniques on a small hologram centered on the table, projected from his phone. Tommy shoveled leftovers from the night before into his mouth as he sat next to Loki on the couch in the living room. As per usual, Loki flipped through the local news stations every handful of minutes. The topic, as it had been for the past week and a half, was Victor Von Doom. He seemed to be playing a little game with the Avengers, running them in circles every chance he got. Otherwise, the news pool was a flat, uneventful one tonight. Again.

Loki’s grip around the remote tightened and the plastic groaned. If this kept up, this entire fiasco would just be overlooked as some childish tantrum.

“ _Breaking news_ …” the anchorwoman reported, lifting a hand up to her earpiece.

Both Loki and Tommy inched forward on the seat of the couch, leaning their faces towards the flat screen.

“ _The Bloomingdale’s on fifty-ninth street just made an announcement about a recent expansion –_  ”

Tommy flopped back on the cushions, almost spilling the contents of his bowl and Loki let out a loud, exasperated sigh. He pressed the arrow on the remote to flip the channel up several stations before hitting another news anchor. This one proved to be better luck.

“ _– situation at the Chase Bank down Madison Avenue.  The NYPD have closed down adjoining streets and have surrounded the building. Citizens are advised to stay clear. Traffic will be diverted off the main roads for now. I repeat, a hostage situation at the Chase Bank down Madison Avenue. The assailants have not been identified as of yet, but –”_

Tommy shot up off the couch, whooping as pieces of spiced chicken bounced out of his bowl and onto the floor. Loki couldn’t hide the sharp grin splitting his face at the report. A hostage situation, this would be a perfect opportunity.

“What’s going on in there?” Billy called as his brother made a racket.

“Get yourselves ready!” Answered Loki, peering around the wall. “We’ve a hostage situation to diffuse.”

The boys looked up from the table, blinking with blank stares before the realization hit them. They found themselves an opportunity. Tony shot up from the table, his chair almost toppling over. He snatched his phone up and sprinted past Loki and out of the kitchen, down to the lab to construct his suit. Billy and Teddy floundered a little, excited and anxious and a little nervous, before getting themselves together. Billy waved his hand and his T-shirt and jeans turned into what Tommy had dubbed his Thor pajamas. Teddy began to shift behind him, flesh rippling and discoloring, growing. Tommy was just a blur from what they could see from the kitchen hallway as he zipped up the stairs to put on his suit. Tony had sweet talked his way into asking for one from a special sponsor of Stark Industries. It was a deep, solid green one piece with chrome accents on the fingertips, down his torso and thinned out around his inner thigh. A pair of goggles with orange-tinted lenses donned his neck and he slipped them on as he came to an abrupt stop next to Loki.

As they rushed down the stairs to Tony’s lab, Loki changed into his own outfit in a similar fashion that Billy had, only with a touch of green. He wore black boots over his calves, ending just below the knee, with gold armored tips, heel, and hem. Black trousers of cloth and leather hugged his legs and waist. A leather green tunic with more folds than necessary dressed his torso with a black hood draping down his back and ribbons of straps acted as sleeves until they hit solid black fingerless gloves. On top of his head, Loki adorned a familiar Asgardian piece so that none could mistaken him for any other; a golden crown with a pair of small horns protruding forth.

Tony had just finished walking out of his machine as the team met him down on the first basement level, his metal suit painted a fiery crimson and gold and shining brightly even under the dully lit lab.

“Wow,” Billy said, grinning from ear to ear. “Well if we don’t do a good job making ourselves out to be superhero material, we’ll make one hell of a fashion statement that’s for sure.”

They gathered in a circle, readying for Billy’s teleportation spell. As the mage took a moment to center himself, Tony glanced next to him at Loki, dressed in his new outfit.

“Really? You’re keeping the horns?” He teased quietly, faceplate lifted out of his face.

Loki quirked an eyebrow at him, smirking.

“Where’s the robbery going on?” Billy asked.

“A Chase Bank, on Madison Avenue. Right at the corner of forty-eighth street,” Tommy answered.

“That’s gonna be a mouthful.”

“We should go to Park Avenue though. I don’t think it’ll help if we just appear in the middle of everything,” Teddy suggested.

“Still a mouthful.”

“I can teleport us there, if it is a hassle,” asked Loki, but Billy shook his head.

“No, you save your magic, I got it.” He took in one last deep breath before speaking, “I want to go to forty-eighth street, Park Avenue.”

 

\- - -

 

Director Fury’s office, despite the amount of people inside, was quiet. The director himself sat at his desk, one eye focusing on something beyond a floating Wanda Maximoff. Clint Barton and his team of four sat at the long, rectangular table in the center of the room. Thor and Pietro were the furthest away from everyone, standing in a far corner. Pietro leaned his back against the floor to ceiling windows, arms crossed over his chest as he watched his sister cast her locator spell. Thor held a stoic expression, arms at his sides as he stared out the windows at the darkened skyline. He played calm about the situation at hand, but his feet fidgeted in an effort to pace.

“You think this is really going to work, don’t you?” Pietro leaned over to Thor, voice a hushed whisper.

“Aye,” answered Thor, turning serious eyes to the other. “And nay. They are desperate to prove themselves, they will take this bait. Though I do not believe them to be tricked so easily by this façade too long. I believe in them.”

“You and Wanda,” Pietro shook his head.

“You do not?”

“I believe,” he began, pushing himself off the window. “That they’re going to get in over there heads.”

“I found them,” Wanda announced calmly and she descended back onto the floor. “Park Avenue.”

“Romanov,” Fury chattered at his earpiece. “They’re coming, get ready.”

“ _Yes’sir._ ”

 

\- - -

 

“That could’ve been a more graceful entrance,” Tony breathed, hovering above the roof of the JPMorgan Chase & Company building. He set Loki down gently, who was eager to have solid ground beneath his feet.

“I didn’t think we’d teleport right at the intersection of forty eighth and Park!” Billy sighed, levitating over the edge. “I’ll try to fix that for next time.”

“Yeah, please do!” Tommy shouted in Teddy’s grasp. “I’d really enjoy not getting hit by a bus before we get to save people.”

“Cease your arguing and focus,” Loki snapped at them, walking to the other side of the roof. Below them, there was the Chase building and a handful of police cars surrounding it. Their red and blue lights flashed obnoxiously, bouncing shadows in the closed intersection. “Stark, are you able to get into their radio frequency?”

“Should be.”

“Then do so.”

Tony silently obeyed, figuring the frequency as he and JARVIS slipped their way in, eavesdropping. The rest of them followed Loki, overlooking the view and the situation. The hot air whipped around them, cooling just a little as the last rays of the sun waved beyond the horizon. Car exhausts and civilian chatter were dulled up here, allowing their ears to pick up on just how loudly their blood was pumping. They were nervous, that much was certain, but not one of them would willingly admit to it.

“Loki,” Tony called out and he turned his head to look over his shoulder at the engineer. “They’re gonna let them walk out with the money and leave the hostages.”

“Of course,” Tommy snorted. “Don’t wanna get their hands dirty.”

“It’s probably best, for the hostages anyway,” Teddy offered. “They can always track them after they’ve run.”

“We aren’t going to allow them to get that far,” said Loki, a mischievous grin sliding onto his face. “We’ll do them the honors of stopping them now.”

“You’ve got a plan?” Billy asked.

“Nope.”

“So we just go in, guns blazing?” Tony asked, faceplate flipping up to show his face. “Or is that too risky?”

“Do you have anything in that tin can that isn’t, you know, deadly?” Tommy poked the metal suit. “Something to stun them maybe? ‘Cause then maybe I could go in afterwards and disarm them before they know what’s going on.”

“That could work,” Billy nodded.

“I have an EMP grenade?”

“Never mind.”

“I think… I may have an idea,” Loki said, turning to the team. “Bring us in, ‘guns blazing’. I will handle disorienting them, Speed you disarm them.”

With those with the inability to fly in the arms of those who could, Tony, Teddy, and Billy began their descent towards the bank, Hulkling leading the way. Adrenaline pumped through their veins, hearts racing in their throats as they sped closer to the building. Loki’s voice nearly trembled as he mumbled a spell, excitement building heavily in his chest, and a bright glint in his eyes. Just before they crashed through the glass, Hulkling turned around to shield Speed from the glass as it shattered, as well as his eyes. Tony’s suit shaded the screen and Wiccan with his brother as Loki let the spell loose. It wasn’t much, nothing but a flash of incredibly white light that blinded nearly everyone inside the front room of the bank. Loki yelled an order, and Speed took it as a signal to go. Hulkling let him go and as soon as his feet touched the ground he was a blur of green and silver. Guns, grenades, knives; anything the robbers could use against the hostages were swiped from their hands and pockets and sheathes.

“That wasn’t too hard…” Tony said over his speakers, setting Loki on the tile flooring of the bank, now scattered with broken glass. “Kind of anti-climatic actually.”

“This can’t be all of them,” said Wiccan, counting those in the main room. The robbers were dressed in all black, intricate face masks in place that hadn’t done any good against Loki’s spell. “I only count four.”

“A job is a job, at least we were successful without anything horrible going awry,” Loki huffed, trying not to sound too disappointed. He had been hoping for something a lot more… heroic, the way Thor has his adventures, but he reminded himself. Small steps, they would get there soon enough. Still, he felt as if they had gone to a casual dress party dressed to the nines. He turned to the civilians, all still bound and some still groaning about their temporary blindness. Moving to help them up and out of the bank, Loki reached a hand out to a redheaded woman near the counter and offered her a hand. “It’s all right, now. You’re safe.”

She looked up at Loki through her tousled hair, eye make-up smudged and ruined from having cried earlier he supposed. She offered him a weak smile before jerking forward, shoulder-tackling Loki to the ground. The ropes around her wrists loosened on their own accord, primal knife cuts fraying it raw. A handful of other, presumably normal people, got up and attached the group, incapacitating them long enough to follow the redhead out the back, grabbing the duffels of money.

“You were saying?” Wiccan groaned.

“Oh, this is much more fun,” Loki chuckled half-heartedly, scrambling to his feet. “Follow them!”

Speed was the first one up and out of the front lobby, banking around the corner of the hallway to follow the robbers. Loki and Billy followed up, and Teddy almost did but Tony stopped him with a cold, metal hand on his green, scaly shoulder.

“Let’s flank ‘em,” he said and Teddy nodded, unfolding his wings from his back.

They left through the front, startling the New York Police Department as well as a few other suits. A giant metal man and a flying green hulk might do that. They shouted something at the young adults through the megaphone, but Tony’s thrusters drowned it out as he and Hulkling started sky bound to get an aerial view of the situation. The screens on Tony’s helmet switched to a blue gradient, allowing him to scan the building. Heat signatures appeared, a handful running away from three of their own.

“They’re heading into Madison Jewelers,” Tony reported. “Left side.”

Inside, Billy stood at the head of the pack, hands up and lips moving steadily as he kept a shield of raw, blue energy up. Loki and Tommy held their ground behind the mage, bullets ricocheting off and bouncing.

“I need a distraction,” Tommy said to Loki, who nodded, the suggestion clear to him.

In a blink, Loki disappeared, reappearing behind a counter full of countless jewels. The robbers fired at him, and the bullets flew right through his wicked grin. With their attention redirected, Speed shot out behind the barrier, injuring one robber before the redhead threw a little black device into the center of the room.

“Grenade!” Billy shouted, ducking down behind another counter. To his right, he saw the real Loki before an ear splitting explosion and blinding flash of white light filled the room.

Ears ringing and eyes blinking multi-colored dots behind a white background of vision, the robbers made their get away through the backdoor into the alleyway. Between the high-pitched ringing, they heard someone swear loudly “ _fuck_ ” and frantic stumbling around, crunching glass beneath feet, and a few twinkles of jewels falling out of their protective casing.

“To – er, Speed?” Billy called out.

“Stark…” he heard Loki mumbled into their radio. “Your status?”

“In pursuit – shit, shit Hulkling the bus!”

“I saw it!”

“Barely!”

“Fucking  _shit_!” Tommy clamored onto his feet. “Using our tactics against us!”

“ _Silence_!” Loki hissed, before questioning again, “In pursuit of what?”

“Happiness – the robbers, who else? They flew outta the alley like a bat out of hell. Two on a motorcycle, the rest in a black Sedan.” Tony paused, the white noise of thrusters and blaring car horns covering the silence. “Heading towards Rockefeller Center!”

“You okay?” Billy asked, turning to Tommy.

“In a minute…” he grumbled, rubbing the heels of his palms against this eyes roughly. “I’ll be fine, don’t baby me.”

“I’m not!”

“Wiccan,” Loki interrupted. “Head to Rockefeller Center by air, see if you can’t get an aerial view of the situation. Speed, we’ll meet them there. If they diverge from their course, report it immediately.”

“Will do. You sure you don’t want me to teleport you two there myself?”

“Don’t baby me either,” Loki ground out, brushing the dirt from his shoulders. He grabbed Speed by the shoulder and with a small mutter of an ancient spell they were gone from Billy’s sight in a flutter of green dust and ozone.

Rockefeller Center, no matter the time of year, was crowded, though the familiar winter scene of people ice skating outside wasn’t terribly missed given the situation. As Loki and Tommy teleported into the middle of the sidewalk, people parted immediately, shocked gasps and hushed whispers all around. Some stopped to take photographs, another person called out asking, “hey, aren’t you Thor’s little brother?” to which Loki flippantly replied, “I’ve a name.”. The two heroes looked to the skies, searching for a glowing blue or a smoke trail to follow. Speed caught Wiccan in the air, following the scene from above, but no sign of the other two.

“We’re here,” he spoke into the radio.

“Where?” Teddy answered.

“Rockefeller – are they not heading this way?” Asked Loki.

“Oh yeah,” Tony now. “Top speed, watch yourselves.”

He and Hulkling banked around a corner, hot on the tails of the vehicles recklessly swerving between traffic. The motorcycle had an easier time, the Sedan was beginning to fall behind.

“Focus on the car,” Tony said, picking up speed. “I’ll nab the cyclists.”

“Gotcha,” Teddy confirmed, swooping down lower.

Another corner, and they were within line of sight with Loki and Tommy.

“I’ll be on mean and green, you’ve got the flying Cola can.”

“My inability to fly puts me at a disadvantage,” Loki warned.

“I can fix that,” Wiccan suggested as he began to descend on the scene.

“Not enough time, picking him up.”

“Don’t you  _dare_.”

“Brace yourself princess.” They could practically hear Tony’s smug grinning over the radio.

The motorcycle sped down Fiftieth first, heading west, eating the curb a little and scaring off pedestrians. Tony soon followed, slowing only a little so that he wouldn’t take Loki’s arms off as he came by. Tommy began running, eyes behind him on the car and it suddenly took a turn down Fifth Avenue instead, blowing past St. Patrick’s Cathedral and throwing the kid off. Teddy banked, and Billy wasn’t far behind, flying well above the streets. Tommy backpedaled, started again, and sped off to follow his brother and partner.

“How’re we doing this?” Tommy asked, flitting carefully between the traffic, careful of the carnage the Sedan left in its wake.

“Stop the car, get them out, incapacitate?” Billy suggested.

“Yeah, but, like, how?”

“I’ve got an idea. You two be ready,” Teddy said, shifting in mid-air.

The large, scaly Hulk became thinner, more aerodynamic, and sped towards the assailants. He hovered above the car, surpassing it until they took a severely wide turn down East Fifty-Second Street, the adjoining intersection jumbling into a several car pile up. Tommy skillfully maneuvered over the agitated taxi cabs and blue collar folks, keeping up behind the car. It was going to take more than a four-way six car pile up to stop him. The car ran a red light, down Madison and narrowly missed being slammed into by an eighteen wheeler on the driver’s side. Yeah, that might be big enough to slow Tommy down.

“Speed!” Wiccan shouted.

He swore, brain pulling between hitting the brakes or trying to go around but instead Tommy opted to jump. Green and chrome sprung up onto the top of the back cargo and hopped down, stumbling a little, but successful.

“I saw Uncle P. do that once,” he laughed into the radio. “I mean, he jumped a skyscraper and not an eighteen wheeler, but you know – same concept.”  
“Congratulations.”

“Guys, get ready!” Teddy shouted, speeding ahead of the Sedan.

In an quick movement, he turned to face the vehicle head on, shape no longer thin and scrawny. His muscles bulged, claws flared as he hit the black tar road with a thunderous  _thump_. The ground cracked beneath him as he braced himself for impact, the driver having little time to react. It hit him dead center, pushed Teddy back and they both skidded down the street leaving claw marks and tire treads in the cement. Eventually they came to a stop, and Tommy was there, snatching the three men out of the car in a flash. They struggled out of his grip only to be held still, petrified, in a light blue glow, courtesy of Billy.

“You okay?” Billy asked as he touched down, looking to Teddy.

The shape shifter rubbed his gnarled hands across his abdomen, grinning. “Yup, nothing like a four door to the chest to wake you up.”

“I’ll have to remember that.”

“Please don’t summon a Sedan into our bedroom.”

“I was thinking more – ”

“I am standing  _right here_ ,” Tommy interrupted. “I’m fine too, by the way, thanks for asking.”

“How do you think Loki and Tony are doing?” Teddy asked, clapping a heavy hand on Tommy’s shoulder.

“I’m sure they’ll radio in if they need help. In the mean time, let’s get these guys to the officers in front of the bank.” Billy said. “Also we’re kind of attracting a crowd.”

On the opposite side of Rockefeller Center, Tony and Loki were in hot pursuit of the motorcyclists. They maneuvered their way easily between oncoming traffic and those adjacent. Tony had little problem keeping up, but with his hands full, he couldn’t do much to stop them besides a few short-ranged rockets. In his arms, Loki managed to get off a few magic spells and missed.

“You’re a terrible aim,” Tony teased. “We should really swap notes.”

“Auto-targeting doesn’t count, and you’re stability isn’t helping either,” Loki snapped back, murmuring another spell. They were getting weaker, but neither said anything about it. “Get in closer.”

“I’m trying.”

“Try harder.”

Tony did so without further comment, flying in lower and narrowly missing a traffic light post. Loki’s hands began to glow with a fierceness and as he released the spell, a rusted gold sphere, the driver turned sharply down an avenue, and the spell missed.

“ _Damn_!” Loki growled.

“It’s all right, we’ve got it,” Tony soothed, keeping his eyes on the target. He could still feel Loki looking up at him, a heated stare. “Try it again, I’ll tell you when to let it go.”

Without another word, Loki did as he was told, putting all of his focus on the spell. This one flickered, unstable, but he held it there between his hands, a growing warmth. Tony quickly put himself in position, almost side by side with the motorcycle. Loki fidgeted but Tony shook his head.

“Not yet.”

“Stark…” he ground out.

“Wait.”

They banked again, predictably, and the engineer let out a smug laugh. They were running them in literal circles – two blocks, then a left, another two blocks, a left, and so on. Tony sped up to meet them again before the two block point, and once in position, he gave Loki the okay. With a strained gasp, Loki let the spell fly and it hit the back passenger square in the back. He jolted forward, knocking the driver unsteadily and the bike lost control.  It skidded down the road, stopping only when it rear-ended a car parallel parked on the curb. The front bumper crunched inward slightly. Tony flew down and let Loki go. He ran towards the robbers, throwing a dagger at the hand of one who grabbed his gun. The knife struck straight through the palm and into his ribcage, and the man let out a pained shout. Before Loki could fire another, the driver flung another black device, this one directed at Tony. It stuck on his left thigh and beeped once before sending a static shock through his suit. He fell to the ground, nothing but dead metal weight now. Damn EMP.

“Are you – ” Loki started, faltering in his steps.

“I’m fine just go!” Tony shouted behind the mask, groaning a little afterwards. “Don’t let her… get away!”

He didn’t need to be told twice, and Loki’s full attention was on the last robber. She hopped over the hood of the damaged vehicle they’d crashed into and shot off down the sidewalk, Loki not far behind. He took another dagger in hand, readying an attack from behind before she quickly veered into a nearby alleyway. Loki didn’t pursue.

The woman didn’t stop to look back, but did spare a quick glance over her shoulder, the darkened visor of the helmet making it hard to see. She didn’t need a clear view to know the kid had stopped following, at least from behind. As she turned her vision frontwards, Loki stood arms out, feet apart, right in front of her. She skidded to a stop and made her way backwards, but the real Loki was behind her this time, the other a simple illusion. He swung a swift punch, hitting nothing but air as she gracefully dodged and aimed her own punch, to his ribcage. Loki blocked it, and took a step back. The alleyway was too narrowed for them to circle, but they took a moment to size each other up, stances at the ready, knife in Loki’s hand and nothing but the bare, bloodied fists for the woman. That’s all she’d need.

Loki struck first, a solid attack to her chest but she caught it, snatching his wrist and twisting. He twisted with her, pulling free and slashing his knife through the air to give them distance. He was quick, kept up well enough as she attacked next, but not enough. Loki blocked an attack to his face only to get a three inch heel to the stomach, knocking him on his back. He kicked out his legs, managed to hit her in the calf and she staggered to one knee. Loki rolled and went in for a lunge and she caught him and they rolled together. She caught him again in the stomach twice, once with her knee, again with her fist, before knocking the blade from his hand. They both went for it, but she caught it first, but Loki held her wrist and twisted. They rolled. With Loki on top, he put a knee on one arm to pin her down. She tossed the knife to her free hand and swiped a clean, narrow strip across Loki’s cheek. He growled and lunged against, this time for her helmet, but she flipped him off and over into the dumpster behind them. Loki hit it with a dull thud but he brushed it off easily. The woman was quick to her feet and jumped up, caught a catwalk to hoist herself up and swung her lower body to kick Loki in the jaw and back against the dumpster. He didn’t brush that one off as easily as before. She went in again, and Loki sidestepped, narrowly missing another knife cut. Turning around, she swung her arm back to cut at Loki, but that one was an illusion. Quick little bastard.

Loki caught her from behind, arm around her neck as he pushed her to the ground. He bullied the helmet off her face and flipped her around, pinned her down better this time with his pelvis digging into her stomach and his knees at her elbows. She grinned up at him, breathing heavily.

“You’re not bad, kid,” she complimented. “I honestly didn’t think you had that in you.”

“Many make that mistake,” Loki growled, taking the knife from her. He put it up to her throat, opened his mouth to spit something venomous, but faltered. She looked familiar. Dangerously so.

Not just the woman who he initially tried to help in the bank before she shoulder tackled him to the floor, further back than that. Perhaps on the television, or newspaper clippings. She was no common robber.

“Widow.” Loki said, breathless and almost a little surprised. “This was a set up.”

She only hummed in response. The grip on Loki’s dagger tightened, pale skin growing white at the knuckles.

“Are you going to take us back to Fury?” Loki asked, voice tight.

“No,” Natasha answered plainly. “This was a test. We got what we wanted.”

The words seared hot into Loki’s ears, made him feel foolish and used. Their debut was a fraud, if only to those who mattered. If they didn’t censor the news stations, they’d be everywhere to the general public. But to S.H.I.E.L.D. – they were a  _test_. He wondered, briefly, if Thor knew about it, if he’d played a hand in it. Loki would’ve thought more on it, but Black Widow kneed him in the back and rolled them over, releasing herself from Loki’s hold. She didn’t linger, only climbed back up on the catwalk, leaving only the sound of her deft footsteps on the metal stairwells for him.

“Loki?” His radio called. Billy’s voice.

He took a moment for himself, breathing in the hot city air that smelled faintly of gasoline and whatever rotten junk had been in that dumpster. Beyond his vision, between the two buildings, was the night sky, a blank midnight blue without stars. A shadow jumped across the not-so narrow gap, Black Widow perhaps, and Loki let out a loud, long sigh.

“Yes?” He finally answered.

“We can’t get Tony on the line, are you two okay?” Behind Billy, Loki could make out the white noise of police sirens and frantic speech.

“He was hit with an EMP device, he should be all right. I lost one of the robbers,” he lied, a white one. “But we’ve attended to the other one.”

“Not bad for our first shot!” Billy exclaimed. “We’re back at the bank.”

“I can handle it,” Loki groaned a little, getting back on his feet. His jaw would most likely blossom into a neat bruise, complimented by the bleeding cut on his cheek. “We’ll be there shortly.”

Radio silence followed and Loki made his way out of the alleyway. To his right, he could see Tony watching over the other robber – probably a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. They had probably all been S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Loki’s stomach churned as he walked over to meet Tony.

“I’m rebooting now that that thing is off,” Tony said once Loki came into earshot. He motioned to the floor, the device dead weight now. “Where’s the other one?”

“Lost her,” Loki deadpanned. “The others were successful and are at the bank now.”

“Then let’s get going.” Tony leaned forward, grabbing the robber around the cuff of his shirt and dragging him up to his feet. “Ready when you are, princess.”

“Do stop calling me that.”

If there hadn’t been a commotion outside of the Chase Bank before, there definitely was now. Camera crews, news station vans, reporters and curious bystanders alike, and a handful of New York officers littered the streets. Billy, Teddy, and Tommy stood towards the center, near the pile of robbers they’d chalked up, unsure of how to act. Tommy wanted to answer some questions, but Teddy kept him in place with a hand on his shoulder. The last time they flaunted in front of the cameras, he, Tony, and Loki were chased into their favorite comic book store by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents half an hour later. Speaking of the other two, they appeared in front of the bank, no sooner had he thought of them, one bad guy in hand. Tony’s suit lit up finally, reboot complete.

“Are we all accounted for?” Teddy asked, jogging over to meet them.

“All but one,” Loki answered, frowning. “How is everything here.”

“I think they might be trying to call our parents or S.H.I.E.L.D.?” Billy mentioned from behind Teddy. “Since we aren’t, you know, affiliated with anyone and kind of made a mess.”

“It’s bullshit.” Sneered Tommy.

“Then I think we should leave, like, now,” Tony said.

“Not until I get a souvenir,” Loki grinned, shaking his cellphone in his hand.

“A what?”

“Loki we don’t have time for a picture,” Billy whined. “We need to go!”

“You don’t have to be in it, I want it for me,” Loki huffed, positioning himself next to the handcuffed robbers-slash-S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. He put his arm straight out, camera light on, and threw up a dorky peace sign with an even dorkier grin that rivaled Thor’s goofy one.

“Is he serious?” Tony asked.

“That’s kind of a loaded question.” Billy laughed, shrugging.

The camera flash went off and Loki put his phone away, wherever Loki vanished things off to with his magic, and made his way back to the team. “Okay, now we can leave.”

“You dork.” Tommy snickered.

Before the officers could stop them, they held hands and with only a few repeated lines “I want to go home” they were gone.

 

\- - -

 

By superhero standards, a bank robbery was borderline juvenile, but for a group of five barely coordinated, barely of legal age, and barely superheroes, a party of celebratory fashion was most definitely in order. The flat screen in the living room played the news reels of the entire encounter at the bank and a few wayward cellphone shots of the car chases. They speculated and theorized and talked all about how these “young Avengers” had stolen the spotlight. S.H.I.E.L.D. hadn’t made an official statement yet, and probably wouldn’t until the next day. Loki wondered what they’d say more than anyone.

They fidgeted about in the living room, Tommy shoveling food into his face after burning away all of lunch and dinner, while Billy and Teddy sat on the adjacent couch on the edge of the seat cushions, listening intently to the news. Every so often they’d switch news stations to see what others were talking about. It was all about them tonight. Loki stood further back, arms crossed over his shoulders, a poker face in place. Tony was downstairs, attempting to remove his armor, but it’d already been thirty minutes and he still hadn’t come back. Loki excused himself before heading down the staircase to Tony’s lab.

Lo and behold, there he was, upside down and cursing up a storm and a half because JARVIS, arms really can’t bend at that angle goddamn it. Loki chuckled from the darker corners of the lab before bringing himself into the low lights, wiggling his fingers at the translucent computer screen to override the system as Tony had taught him this morning. It didn’t take him half an hour, only about ten minutes this time, and the machine dropped Tony onto his Kevlar clad back.

“It freaks out whenever we get to the legs part I don’t understand why,” Tony let out an exasperated sigh, looking up at Loki from the floor. “So how popular are we?”

“Pretty popular,” Loki replied with a curt smile. He offered Tony a hand and the brunette took it. “They are calling us all sorts of things.”

“Good things I hope.”

Loki shrugged, pulling Tony up to his feet. “A little of everything, really.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers I guess,” Tony chuckled, carding his fingers through his hair. “Oh my  _god_ , I can’t believe we actually pulled off that stunt tonight!”

The other only hummed quietly in response, watching as Tony bounded around the lab, still clad from the thighs down in metal.

“I mean we could use a little more stability in the teamwork department, but we’re just getting started. And the point is that we’re recognized, we’re out there! We did what your guardians said we couldn’t do. And S.H.I.E.L.D., oh I bet their real pissed about this. All this attention we’re getting after they told you guys not to go through with this.” Tony continued, bringing up a few light blue computer windows. “It’s not like we’re trying to start some kind of anarchy or whatever, I think they’d see that by now right? True, true, we did kind of make a mess, and we may have accidentally let that one chick go – but that’s not your fault really, I mean your face says she really gave you a run for your money – but it wasn’t like… Godzilla amount of destruction you know?”

Loki hummed again, practicing his gaze on a countertop, and Tony frowned.

“I thought you’d be a little more excited than this, what’s up?”

The other looked up, a relaxed expression playing across his face as well as a soft smile touching his lips. “Nothing, just a little tired. I have to work on my stamina.”

“Yeah I hear you god types have quite a bit of it,” Tony quirked an eyebrow at Loki, and he lifted both of his up in return. “Seriously, is that all that’s bugging you?”

Loki opened his mouth, probably to lie again and say yes, he was fine, honestly what was with everyone coddling him today, but shut it, pressed his lips into a thin line and glanced over at the stairs leading up to the living room.

“I need you to keep this between us,” he started and didn’t continue until Tony gave him an unsure nod. “Those weren’t bank robbers we caught tonight, they were S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Or, at least, the woman was. Black Widow.”

Tony blinked at him, stunned. “What?” Came the intelligible reply. “Like Natasha Romanov of S.H.I.E.L.D. Black Widow?”

Loki gave him a look as if to say, “who else, genius?”

“You went toe to toe with  _the_  Black Widow?” Tony offered him a lopsided grin, before the real issue at hand sunk in a little deeper. His smile faltered. “Oh, no, wait. Are you saying that those guys we caught were all just S.H.I.E.L.D. lackeys? That… it was a set up?”

“Well, she said it was a ‘test’ but set up works perfectly too.”

“Shit…” Tony slammed his hand, palm open, onto the work bench. He clenched his fingers into a fist a few times before relaxing. “Well… it can’t be too bad. I mean, we took on S.H.I.E.L.D. agents instead of a bunch of no name bank robbers. That’s almost a better predicament.”

“I’m not so sure.”

Tony let out an exasperated sigh and closed the distance between them, bringing his hands up to smush Loki’s cheeks. “Relax. I know it stings a bit knowing it was S.H.I.E.L.D. prying on our big day, but think about it – that’s so much better right? We didn’t just make news, we beat up what I can only assume were well-trained S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and those guys don’t mess around. And you went toe to toe with Black Widow herself – ”

“She was most likely taking it easy on me, you know,” Loki managed between Tony’s hands.

“Shut up, that’s not the point. The point is we proved them wrong and we’re in the news, which means they’ll be expecting more appearances, they’ll start questioning S.H.I.E.L.D. and maybe with the press breathing down their necks they’ll have to take us seriously.” Tony smiled, nodding at his own words.

“You’re so optimistic sometimes it makes me sick, you know that?” Loki grumbled, offering a half-hearted grin in return. “But I still want this to stay between us. I don’t what the others getting paranoid about S.H.I.E.L.D. more than we already are.”

“Yeah, I hear you,” Tony said, letting go of Loki’s face. “I’m sure whatever this so-called test was, it was for a reason, but there’s no reason freaking out about it now. I think we’ve earned a little R and R.”

“After you’ve removed your metal legs, I assume?”

“What?” Tony looked down, almost forgetting the suit was still stuck from the thighs down. “Right, yeah.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops! Between computer problems and finals, I haven't had time to update and I'm really sorry about that! I'll be updating again this Wednesday and again Saturday so I can get back up to speed. Thank you all so much for your patience and I'm sorry again for the delay!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: April 30th


	9. ripples in the tide

“Good morning eastern seaboard, it’s eleven o’ clock on the dot and today’s hot story – young avengers. They aren’t sidekicks, in fact they aren’t even affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D. as was told to us this morning by a spokesperson. What does that make them? Vigilantes? Or just a few fanboys in latex and metal? It wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened, but these five young men seem to be the real deal. All of them, except one, are unidentifiable.

“Sources can confirm that this young man dressed in green is Thor’s younger and recently reincarnated brother Loki. It seems this time around, he’s shooting for the golden age of the heroes! A lot of skepticism is covering this young god-ling; has he really turned over a new leaf, or just another trick up his sleeve? A mystery shrouds both his ambitions and his teammates, all of which are unfamiliar, though sporting iconic looks.

“A few amateur photos taken via cellphones were sent into the station last night, giving us a bigger picture of what went on. This young man has been compared by several viewers to the infamous Quicksilver; white hair, superpowers and all. He stayed grouped with what we at the station have been calling Hulk-ling and Asgardian. It also seems that Asgardian and the Quicksilver wanna-be look related, but we haven’t confirmed that yet.

“Loki split up from the group at Rockefeller Center in pursuit of one of the two groups of robbers who held up a Chase Bank near Forty-Eighth, along with the last member of the group. We aren’t sure if he’s man or machine, but he seemed sentient and free of his own will. Pictures show that after a disruptive device had been thrown at him, he still functioned, leaving us to believe that there may be a person inside. We’ve come accustomed to calling him Iron Man, but our engineering expert here tells us that’s politically incorrect.”

“That’s right, Susan, a machine of that design couldn’t possibly be made of – ”

_Click_.

“Last night’s seemingly ordinary bank robbery at Chase Bank over at the corner of Madison Avenue and East Forty-Eighth Street became center stage for the debut of four unidentified superhero  _kids_  and one familiar demi-god. At a press conference held this morning outside of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s New York Headquarters, a spokesperson announced they were unaffiliated with them. What does that mean for the rest of those unaffiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D.? The usual connotation to that is them being a villain, isn’t that right Ms. Wagner?”

“That’s usually the case, yes, but these kids did much more good than harm. Even the damage to the environment was minimal compared to some.”

“Even with someone like Thor’s brother Loki on their team, do you think – ”

_Click._

“What sort of message do you think these young vigilantes are sending out to other young superheroes? They aren’t affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D. in any way, does that make it okay for just  _anyone_  to go against S.H.I.E.L.D.?”

“The thing about S.H.I.E.L.D. is that they’ve been around for a long,  _long_  time. I don’t think these kids will get away with much for long if they don’t go to the big man himself. I mean, hah, it stands for  _Hazard Intervention_ , it’s in the name.”

“You think they’re a hazard Mark?”

“Loki Laufeyson is a part of this team, John, and you’re telling me you don’t think they’re a hazard?”

“I didn’t say that.”

_Click._

“I think it’s great that these kids are coming out and taking a stand against the government officials – ”

_Click._

“We’re here with Obadiah Stane – ”

_Click… click._

“ – of Stark Industries, that is until the time Tony Stark is of age to take it out of your hands, is that right?”

“That’s right, Kelly, in three more years.”

“And what does Tony Stark plan to do, if I may ask?”

“We’ve talked about this, in private mind you, and while I can’t give any details – aw, come on don’t give me that face, you know better – I think the kid’s got a good head on his shoulders, big bright new ideas for the company.”

“Has anything been discussed about the part of the company pertaining to superheroes?”

“Ah, no. Not yet.”

“I know, I know, tight-lipped. But, if I may ask  _your_  opinion on the newest matter – those kid superheroes who are, according to S.H.I.E.L.D., unaffiliated with anyone. Do they hold any concern for your plans in the next three years?”

“If anything, they reinforce the safety measures we’re trying to implement. That’s all Howard Stark ever wanted to do, and I’ll be continuing that legacy, and I can’t see the young Stark straying any differently. These villains, for one, what is S.H.I.E.L.D. doing with them? If they’re captured, and that isn’t often for those big name ones, what happens to them? I’ll tell you what they should be doing with them, taking away their powers. We have that technology at Stark Industries.

“We’ve been called a lot of things, inhumane being the most prominent let me tell you. After that incident at one of our local public announcements, we aren’t thinking about putting this serum in the pockets of cops. That would be irresponsible.”

“Howard Stark has been noted, on several occasions, to say things that have struck almost like a war tune though.”

“He can get carried away sometimes, what can I say? I promise, Stark Industries has no plans on starting some kind of Civil War.”

_Click._

The television went blank and reflected back a picture of the boy who’d been scouring the news stations for the better half of the hour. He fidgeted in the ratty armchair that his grandfather fancied, but he wasn’t home today, neither was his mother. It left him with the sounds of police sirens and kids playing baseball in the middle of the streets to filter in through the open window on the hot summer day in the Bronx. A cicada chirped from one of the hand-planted trees on the sidewalk, a loud buzzing sound and the teenager fidgeted again in the armchair. He pressed his dark lips together, fingers clenching and releasing the worn cushions before squeezing them again. His sneaker-clad feet tapped anxiously on the carpeted floor, his chest expanded with a long, deep breath through his nose and caved in when he exhaled through his mouth. His heart beat fluttered excitedly in his ribcage, brain abuzz with the incredibly irresponsible idea that had been slowly forming since he’d watched the news reports on a bank robbery the night before.

Elijah Bradley smirked at his reflection before pushing himself off the couch and headed out of the room, kitchen bound.

A dormant thought blossomed as the news reports continued to flood in on this new development of kid superheroes, unaffiliated and free. He could do something like that, Eli thought, because he couldn’t do much else with his grandfather’s super soldier blood pumping through him. Depend himself against a mugging, lift up a side parked automobile when the kids playing in the street couldn’t reach their ball that had rolled underneath, help carrying nearly all the groceries for his mother in one fell swoop; sure. In fact, Eli could see Steve Rogers doing something like that too back in the day. Now he fought alongside people like Thor and Falcon, the Maximoff Twins, and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. He could do something like that, Eli repeated mentally as he fixed himself a sandwich.

In his room, underneath his bed, Eli had a replica of Captain America’s original shield; an almost diamond shape that curved inwards to a point at the top. Three stars decorated the rim while the body was flushed with red and white stripes. It wasn’t Vibranium, but it certainly could hold its own against bullets. There was a suit too, folded neatly underneath the shield, a pretty basic one but it would help keep his identity hidden. Now the only question was, where did he sign up? With their unaffiliated status causing quite the buzz, he doubted they would be anywhere obvious enough for S.H.I.E.L.D. to see, let alone himself.

Eli had a plan, a stupid one, but it was something. If he couldn’t get to the so-called Young Avengers at their headquarters, wherever that may be, he’d just have to meet them on the field. Several blocks down there was an abandoned warehouse that served as a hideout for a few drug dealers. They dealt with MGH – mutant growth hormones – that would temporarily give the user the abilities of a modern day super soldier. Eli could call in an anonymous tip to the police, grab attention, and throw himself into action. Even if the group of kid heroes didn’t come, Eli would be on the news, and they’d see him there. Not an entirely fool-proof plan, but it was something.

 

\- - -

 

“We just want to see mister – ow, hey! Watch it! I could sew you!”

“Yeah? I’d like to see you try, little lady.”

“Please don’t kick us out, she didn’t mean to disrupt anything – ”

“Yes I did!”

“ _Kate_ …”

“Out!”

Outside of the Stark Industries building, an employed guard pushed two young women out from the double doors and into the crowded streets non-too gently. One of them, the blonde, almost tripped into a gaggle of school girls, while the other, a dark-haired woman, caught her balance only just before falling onto the curb.

“Unbelievable,” Kate Bishop huffed, folding her arms over her chest.

“He probably isn’t even here Kate,” Cassie Lang suggested as she brushed her skirt off.

“Then we’ll try someplace else,” she grinned, turning to look over her shoulder at the blonde. “But lunch first.”

That seemed to put a smile on Cassie’s face, and they made their way down to a diner that made the meanest corn beef sandwich this side of the bay.

Kate Bishop and Cassie Lang had been on the hunt of Tony Stark since early that morning, after news reports began flooding in about a group of kid superheroes and a bank robbery. Kate wouldn’t have been so interested in it if it hadn’t been for one superhero in particular, namely what he was wearing. A few weeks ago, her father’s company had been called in for a favor from Stark Industries, asking for a one piece suit made of some rather particular material and colors. Kate had seen it, had a piece in making it for heaven’s sake; she’d know that speedster’s outfit anywhere. And that kid was wearing it on television. She had much more than a few questions for Tony Stark though.

“Lunch, and then Stark Mansion,” Kate motioned proudly.

“If they won’t let us into Stark Industries, what makes you think we’ll be able to get into his house?” Cassie asked.

“Blackmail, and a little snooping.”

 

\- - -

 

The boys had been centered around the living room for the better half of the day, eyes glued to the television screen as they took turns flipping the channels from talks shows to news reporters to press conferences. News ranged from the upmost positive to the most outrageously negative, a lot of theories and even more speculations. Both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Stark Industries had press conferences this morning regarding last night, both stressing how dangerous and irresponsible this sort of thing was for different reasons. It didn’t seem to ruin their positive outlook on the situation at hand though; they were out there for the world to see and planning on another stunt pretty soon if they were given the opportunity.

“I like Iron Man, it’s got a nice ring to it,” Billy commented after a few different news reporters began unofficially dubbing Tony.

“Technically, it’s made of titanium alloy, but Titanium Alloy Man is a mouthful,” Tony shrugged, lounging back on the couch.

“Not to mention the nerdiest sounding superhero name to date,” added Tommy.

“At least they aren’t calling him Asgardian,” Billy huffed, slouching into the couch.

“I told you your outfit looked like Thor pajamas.” That earned Tommy a couch cushion to the face.

“I still think it looks cute,” Teddy soothed. “Maybe we should at least come out letting people know what we want to be called? Even if Billy’s is the only one they got wrong.”

“Perhaps next time,” Loki said, perched on the edge of the couch with his knees up to his chest. “We’ll do a little bit of Q and A before S.H.I.E.L.D. shows up to bust us.”

“Or our parents.”

They could only imagine what their guardians were doing now; probably beside themselves with worry or anger or both. Loki wondered if Thor knew that the bank robbery had been a set up, if he’d been a part of it the whole time. He wanted to be upset about it, but found that he couldn’t do it. It helped them, that much he couldn’t deny, but embarrassing all the same that they’d been weeded out by S.H.I.E.L.D. instead of something legitimate. Next time, for sure, as Tony kept reminding him. Nevertheless, this was more than he could’ve asked for when it came to their first time out as superheroes. The press couldn’t shut up about them.

“ _Sir_.” JARVIS calmly called over the intercom. “ _There are two young girls climbing over the back fence in the yard_.”

Everyone stopped, television muted, and looked towards the sliding doors leading to the backyard. The blinds and curtains were pulled, JARVIS’s cameras were enough to alert them of any disruptions.

“Damn, those reporters are being persistent today,” Tony grumbled, pushing himself off the couch.

“I keep telling you, if you’d only let me turn your iron fences into snakes – ” Loki started.

“ _I don’t believe these are reporters, sir,_ ” JARVIS corrected. “ _Nor anyone who would cause harm._ ”

“Stark Groupies?” Tommy laughed.

“Whatever, I’ll handle them,” Tony sighed, putting his lunch down on the coffee table. “Stay out of sight.”

“Wait, here!” Teddy tossed him one of the ear buds they’d used the night before for communicating. “So we can hear.”

“I doubt it’ll be exciting enough to eavesdrop on,” he chuckled, affixing the com to his ear. “I’ll be back.”

Tony made his way to the back doors, moving aside the thick curtains and flapping blinds before pulling the door open. The girls weren’t being entirely sneaky about breaking in, although it wasn’t as if he backyard had a lot of places to hide behind. There were trees obscuring most of the view from towering apartments on either side and a few hedges that were beginning to brown in the unbelievable heat. The only thing kept in good care was a garden on the south side, his mother’s, but even that too looked wilted. The brick patio burned underneath Tony’s bare feet and he cursed, hopping from one foot to the other.

Kate marched along the yard, not making any effort to hide the fact that she and Cassie were trespassing. In fact, when she caught side of Tony, she waved at him and picked up her pace.

“Hey!” He shouted. “Look you two need to get off my property, okay? I’m not gonna call the police or anything, but – ”

“Actually, Mr. Stark, we’re here to talk to you,” Cassie prompted, hopping avoiding a patch of flowers. “We tried reaching you at the company but they threw us out.”

“Yeah, I’m about to do the same to you here.”

“I’ve got a bit of information you might be interested in hearing first,” said Kate as she walked across the brick pathway. She stuck out her hand to Tony once they were close enough, grinning at him with closed lips. “Kate Bishop, and this is Cassie Lang.”

Tony blinked at the hand, then up at the girls. Bishop rang familiarity, Lang rang a little louder. He put a hand up to his ear. “You mean like… Scott Lang’s daughter?”

“Oh! Yeah,” she replied, offering a short wave. “Ant-Man’s daughter.”

His heart jumped a little, wondering if this was another S.H.I.E.L.D. set up. Scott Lang hadn’t been at the meeting when he met Fury and the others, but that didn’t mean he didn’t know. Tony hid his apprehension with a dumb grin and a handshake for Kate.

“And why does Bishop sound familiar?”

“We’re kind of in the know with Stark Industries,” she answered nonchalantly. “You called in a favor, remember?”

Tony let go of her hand, knitting his brows a moment to understand what exactly she meant by favor. When he didn’t bite, Kate tried again.

“About a weirdly specific one piece outfit that I saw on the television last night.”  
 _Oh_. “Oh.” Tony repeated dumbly. “Let’s have this conversation inside.”

There was a bit of mild shuffling coming from the living room as they reached the double doors that led back inside, and by the time Tony brought Kate and Cassie inside it was empty. As soon as Tony shut the door and fixed the curtains back into position, Cassie turned to him, giggling a little.

“You’re that flying metal suit aren’t you?” She asked. “Iron Man?”

“That’s what they’re calling m –  _him_.” Tony fumbled. “Why d’you think it’s me?”

“We’ll cut to the chase,” Kate said, leaning on one of the arms of the couches. “I know Stark Industries called in a favor for that weird green and silver one piece outfit like a month ago. I worked on it, I’d know it anywhere. And imagine my surprise when I saw it on the news last night being worn by some spaz zipping around the city.”

Something clinked around the kitchen a moment, but then quieted down.

“So either you’re harboring a bunch of kid hero fugitives, or you’re a part of them,” Kate continued. “Either way, we want in.”

Tony blinked, surprised, to say the least. “Wait, what?”

“We want to join the Young Avengers,” Cassie repeated, nodding.

“That’s not an official thing, not that I would know – ” Tony caught sight of Loki behind the girls, in the kitchen, giving him a slashing motion across his neck. “I really don’t think that would be a good idea anyway.”

“Okay,” Kate shrugged. “I’ll just make sure if anyone tries to track where that suit came from, it’ll lead them straight to you.”

Tony chuckled. “Oh, I’d like to see you hack my hack.”

“So you admit you ordered that suit,” she quirked an eyebrow at Tony, who pressed his lips together into a thin line. “Which is it, are you their sponsor or are you a part of them?”

“I really can’t – ”

“If you could just let us talk to whoever is in charge then?” Cassie asked.

“That’s an even worse idea.” Tony didn’t miss the look Loki gave him around the corner.

Kate opened her mouth to say something, but the rustling from the kitchen came again, this time louder along with a hushed whisper. Loki dove back behind the wall as she looked over her shoulder towards the kitchen. Tony was beginning to wonder why they piled up into the kitchen when they could’ve just gone downstairs.

“Look if you’re afraid we’re with S.H.I.E.L.D. or anything, we’re not. My dad has no idea I’m here,” Cassie said. “Ugh, and if my  _mom_  found out…”

“I’m guessing your mom doesn’t entirely approve of the whole superhero deal?” Tony asked.

“Yeah, that’s uh… why they separated,” she shrank a little before shrugging. “And of course my dad has no idea I’ve been sneaking Pym Particles whenever we visit S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters so yeah. They wouldn’t know it was me on T.V. if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“It’s not.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“If there are too many people,” Loki said from the kitchen, walking around the corner to show himself. “It becomes a liability.”

“Not that we don’t appreciate your enthusiasm,” Tony added.

“But it isn’t welcomed either.”

“That’s not fair,” Cassie spoke up, turning to Loki. “You’ve inspired people going against S.H.I.E.L.D. but you won’t let them do as you’re doing?”

“That wasn’t our intended effect,” answered Loki. “We are doing this for ourselves.”

“That’s selfish.”

“Ambitions often are.”

“So, what’ll you do when someone doesn’t come to you, but goes off to fight crime by themselves dressed up as, oh let’s say, Captain America?” Kate asked, folding her arms over her chest as she watched the muted television screen. “You gonna take responsibility?”

“That was oddly specific,” Tony mused, turning to follow Kate’s gaze. “Oh.”

“Damn…” Loki sighed.

On the television, in the upper right hand corner of the screen beyond where a female news reporter mouthed words, there was an action scene playing out. Large, muscled men fighting a smaller, what they could only assume was a male, dressed in red gloves, white pants, and a blue buttoned overcoat with matching face mask. They fired at him, threw a few cinderblocks that he managed to avoid as he propped his shield up to take the bullets.

“We should probably talk to him too,” Tony suggested, sparing a glance to Loki. “You know, after we help him.” Loki made a face in his direction, something akin to exasperated fatigue and disinterest. “Oh come, think of it as a morning work out.”

“Sure, massive men overdosed on MGH is part of anyone’s balanced meal,” Loki shrugged. He pointed at Cassie and Kate and added, “You two, stay put. We aren’t finished with our conversation.”

“Good, neither were we.” Kate replied haughtily.

“Help yourself to the kitchen, but only the kitchen,” Tony offered, making his way down to the basement. “JARVIS, keep an eye on them.”

“ _Yes, sir_.”

From the kitchen, three more piled out, two already dressed and resized, the other zipping up the stairs to change.

“I knew I recognized you,” Cassie said, pointing to Billy. “You’re the Scarlet Witch’s son. I saw you once when I was visiting S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.”

“So that means you guys got Spaz out of jail too, huh?” Inquired Kate.

“It was juvie,” Tommy said from the stairs. In a blink of an eye he was next to Billy. “And it’s  _Speed_.”

“Enough,” Loki called, already two steps down to the basement. “I realize there aren’t any women for you to awkwardly flirt with, Thomas, but they’ll be here when we get back.”

“I like him,” Kate laughed as the boys filed down into the basement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, questions, concerns, constructive criticism, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comments!
> 
> I'd like to thank everyone for their patience again and bearing with the lack of updates the past month! <3
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: May 3rd


	10. we are building a religion

In hindsight, going after a drug organization that mainly profited from mutant growth hormones by himself without proper training wasn’t the best idea to date. A cinderblock hit the center of his shield and Eli thought that he couldn’t complain entirely; it was working. Outside the warehouse, he could hear the police sirens and the collective sound of boots hitting cement as the officers gathered into position. He hoped a few news stations were outside as well, or else the entire point of this stunt would be a waste of time. Not an entire waste, he reminded himself as he threw a wide punch to one of the thug’s faces. It would do the public some good getting these mugs off the streets. The thug didn’t seem phased at all by the punch, only widened his lips into a grin against blood-stained teeth.

“My turn,” he growled, backhanding Eli.

The possibility that the thugs would actually take the drug had been in the back of Eli’s mind when he called them out as about as gracefully as a blindfolded American Eagle. Two had been inside, two patrolling outside who had found Eli and promptly threw him through a newspaper covered window. Eli managed to knock one guy out with the butt of his shield against his head, leaving an openly bleeding wound across his forehead. While he’d been dealing with him, the other three shot themselves a dose of the MGH, turning three relatively fit men into miniature Hulk figures, minus the green. Until Eli was backhanded into the cement wall across the room, he’d been holding up pretty well.

A gasp escaped him, harsh and ragged behind the face mask. His vision blurred only for a second, but it was a second too long as another dealer picked him up by the collar from behind. He tossed Eli out another newspaper clad window, this one facing the open street. He tumbled out and the shield fumbled out of his grasp, both of them scattered into the middle of the road to a circle of police cars and flashing lights. The three dealers inside followed, crashing through the wall and sending cinderblocks and cement flying into the crowd. Everyone bolted for cover, but not before a translucent blue wall shielded them from the debris. Wiccan floated down, Hulking holding Speed and Iron Man holding Loki bringing up the rear from above.

“It’s those kids from last night,” one of the officers said to another and Eli turned around to look at them behind his red eye cover.

“You okay?” Wiccan asked, offering a hand to the fallen patriotic lad.

Eli grabbed it hastily, allowing himself to be pulled up. “Yeah, definitely now that you guys are here.”

“Yeah about that…” he scratched the nape of his neck. “We need to talk about this.”

“I completely agree.” Even without seeing his face, Billy could feel the smile behind his mask and his heart sunk a little. Was it right for them to be downplaying others who wanted to join in on the spotlight?

Loki would say yes if he wasn’t busy playing illusionist with one of the mutated drug dealers. They weren’t as sluggish as they seemed, but the god-ling kept up well enough, allowing one illusion to be flattened beneath a massive hand before Loki reappeared someplace else. Speed, too, played this to his advantage as he was much quicker than Loki. He ran circles around another, finding the breath to taunt it at the same time. Hulkling went for a more brutal, hands on approach. They were hand in hand, Hulkling’s claws digging into the back of the dealer’s hands as they shoved against each other’s strength. Given the crack in the asphalt beneath the mutant’s feet, Hulkling was winning.

“Are there anymore?” Tony asked Eli as he loudly came up behind him.

“Yeah, I knocked him out earlier, he’s inside.”

“Show me.”

Eli jogged around the frays moving to the side of the building where he’d originally been snooping on the drug dealers. Iron Man hovered a little ways above and behind him, keeping himself steadied as Eli stopped to point inside. He motioned for Eli to stand back before putting a hand up, the repulsors in his palm whining before going off and blasting a larger opening for them to squeeze through. When the dust settled, Eli jumped in first, looking to the corner where he remembered knocking the fourth guy into. It was empty.

“You’ll regret this,” a voice came from the opposite side of the room. The two young men turned to look where the MGH stash had been and saw the man, one hand full of small, purple pills. “ _Boy_.”

“MGH?” Tony asked over the loud speaker, to Eli.

“Yeah.” He nodded, bringing his shield up and taking a step back. “You’re only suppose to take one.”

“He just took five.” Iron Man lifted both arms up, stabilizing his flight pattern with his boots, and warmed up the repulsors to blast the dealer. “Get behind me!”

Eli did as he was told and Iron Man shot off his repulsors. The man put an arm up to deflect the attack and went sailing across the room anyway, leaving a rather large crater in the wall adjacent to them. Tony opened his mouth again, probably to say something witty about this guy being down for the count, except he wasn’t. From the dust cloud and rubble, there came an obscene noise that sounded like bones breaking and flesh ripping, clothes shredding and an discomforting yell that rang out even outside the building.

“We’re done out here St – ah, Iron Man. Your situation inside?” Loki radioed in.

“Spectacular,” Tony said, throwing another shot of repulsor blasts. The man, or rather mutant now, roared again.

“I dunno, that doesn’t sound spectacular to me,” Speed chimed in.

The debris was beginning to settle and Tony backed up, putting one hand down to shoo Eli further back as well. Muscles rippled and veins popped tightly against the skin, a rumbling growl shook the two to the core as the man, if he could be considered a man any longer, stood to full height, towering about half the height of the room now. He roared, causing the building to shudder beneath the sound.

“Okay, time to go. Brace yourself American Eagle,” Tony half turned in mid-air and reached out to grab Eli underneath his arms.

The beast charged at them suddenly, quicker than one would think, and Tony had just securely brought Eli into his arms when a hand smacked him out of the air like swatting a fly. Iron Man tumbled out into the crowd of police, the rest of the team, and three now normal sized drug dealers in custody. The team ran to them and the police backed up as the monster leapt through the opening in the side of the building. Teddy moved to intercept him, wings retracting against his back as he flung himself forward. They collided in mid-air, crashing and tumbling to the ground.

“Are you two alright?” Wiccan asked as he knelt by Iron Man and Eli’s side. Tony had taken the brunt of the fall and Eli’s outfit had a few tears at the bend of his elbows.

“Yeah, sure, never better,” Tony replied.

“I’m fine,” Eli said, pushing himself off of Iron Man. “I know how to stop this thing.”

“You’ll be staying put with the officers,” Loki ordered, arms crossed over his chest. “This isn’t a fight for you.”

“That’s funny, considering I started it,” the other argued.

“And we’ll finish your irresponsible choice to start it.” The god-ling looked down at Tony, offering him a hand. “Can you still fight?”

“Princess, I’m just getting started,” he laughed against the speakers, taking the offered hand.

“I’ve asked you several times to cease with that pet name.”

Once Tony got to his feet, he lifted off and circled to go help Hulkling. Teddy seemed to be struggling, shape shifting to keep on his feet as best he could. The beast grabbed Hulkling by the shoulders and shoved, attempting to push him through a neighboring building across the avenue, but he held strong against it. He had his claws wrapped around the monster’s torso, digging deep and pushing against him. Hulkling’s feet were beginning to sink into the asphalt with the effort to grab the upper hand. Behind Teddy, he could hear the sound of thrusters and rockets coming to his aid. He ducked down, used his shoulder to push against the mutated man further. The rockets hit square against the enemy’s shoulders, burning the flesh, but seemingly doing little else except effectively pissing the thing off. He roared angrily at Tony and curled his arms under Hulkling’s. With a burst of strength, he pried Teddy away and hoisted him off the ground. Teddy dug his claws into the beast’s forearms, attempting to keep himself grounded. Tony flanked them, tried firing his repulsors at the monster and again he roared, lifting Teddy up into the air further despite the gnarled claws ripping his flesh.

“Okay, that’s not working!” Hulkling yelled, slimming himself down so he could slip out of his grip. “Try something else!”

Hulkling dodged backwards as the hands that had been holding him seconds ago came crashing down onto the ground, creating a crater. He spread his wings and lunged upward to escape a sweeping swipe of his arm and joined Tony in the sky.

“Look, I know how to defeat this thing, just let me give it a shot!” Eli said to Loki, who was busy circling the fight.

Loki didn’t seem to be paying attention, and it was Wiccan who replied, “Alright, shoot – what’s the plan?”

“An overdose,” he proclaimed, gesturing to the open hole in the building. “We can get a syringe and inject too much into him, he’ll either pass out or die. Either way, the situation is handled.”

“Is this proven correct?” Loki asked, almost out of the blue. He hadn’t seemed to be listening earlier, preoccupied with the situation at hand.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean,” he stopped circling, and turned to face Eli directly. “You are positive giving him another dose will suppress him, and not make him stronger?”

Something shifted behind Eli’s face mask, an uneasy expression most likely. “No.”

“Then we won’t be risking it.”

Eli let out an exasperated sigh, throwing a hand out at the beast. “Do you have any other bright ideas then?”

Loki took a few steps before stopping again. He didn’t, but Eli’s sounded incredibly reckless. Looking up at Iron Man and Hulkling, down a little ways where Speed was zipping between the mutant dealer’s legs, they were the very definition of reckless. He pressed his lips together, gazed at Eli in his peripheral and let out a hefty sigh.

“Wiccan, cover us,” Loki said, grabbing Eli by the forearm. “You and I will get the drug.”

Billy gave Loki an apprehensive look before nodding to him, following the two towards the building. He hovered behind them, watching as Tommy continued to sucker punch the beast to no success and the two flyboys continued with their aerial attacks. Hulkling dove in, claws out and ready while Iron Man distracted him with his last round of rockets. The beast put one hairy arm up to deflect the rocket, while his other hand managed to snatch Hulkling out of the hair by his leg. Teddy let out a surprised shout as he was flung downwards in a sweeping arch, a B-line for Speed’s route. They collided and skidded across the ground towards the officers. Billy put his hands up, mumbled a mantra, and a blue light enveloped his brother and boyfriend, stopping them in motion before they hit the police.

“You two okay?” Wiccan asked.

The radio was silent for a moment before Tommy groaned, “Yeah, thanks, good catch” and Teddy offered a scaly thumbs up.

“Stay with them,” Loki ordered, motioning towards Speed and Hulkling. “Keep that thing distracted.”

Wiccan took to the air immediately, catching another flying object through the air – a trashed car headed towards the officers yet again. Eli and Loki booked for the building and managed to slip by the beast unnoticed as Iron Man redirected his attention towards him.

There wasn’t much left of the station where the drugs had been kept and created, not after Iron Man blasted one of the drug dealers across the room. Loki picked up a few unbroken corked tubes filled with liquid while Eli rummaged through the mess for a syringe.

“What if there is no syringe?” Loki asked, kicking over some rubble.

“Then look for little purple capsules. It’ll be harder for us to get him to digest those, but it’s better than nothing.”

“You seem to know quite a bit about mutant growth hormones,” Loki said up, looking to Eli out of the corner of his eye.

Even if Eli had planned on saying anything, Iron Man would’ve interrupted him just as an explanation left his lips. The metal man scraped and sparkled as it slowed to a stop in the middle of the room after having sailed through the large opening in the wall.

“Good news,” Tony managed through the loud speaker. “I’m grounded.”

“How is that good news?” Loki huffed, tossing away another broken syringe.

“I dunno, I’m a little disoriented. But bad news is I kinda brought the big guy this way.”

“Good, because I just found a syringe,” Eli announced, grinning behind his face mask. “Give me the serum.”

A police siren started to go off outside, followed by a crunch and the wavering continuation of the siren. It wasn’t long before the car crashing through the steadily growing hole in the wall, towards Eli and Loki. Eli dashed backwards and Loki disappeared, allowing the car to catch nothing but air before slamming into the back wall. The sirens stopped, but the lights continued with a weak flicker.

“Loki?” Tony called out, picking himself up off the ground.

“Here,” the voice came from behind him, in a corner of the room. When Tony caught sight of him, he blinked and Loki was gone again. “Take the serum, and hurry.”

Loki was at Eli’s side now, the two of them scrambling to get the syringe filled as the beast reentered the building with a mighty roar. Billy was behind him, arms up with his palms out, lips moving in a quick spell. A faded blue emitted from the monster’s legs, up to his knees, and Billy looked to be straining to hold it in place. Without mobility, the beast bent down and grabbed a handful of rubble with the intent of throwing it at Tony, Eli, and Loki. Hulkling flew in and latched onto his arms, attempting to kill his movement, and Tony tried to veer the beast’s attention towards him as he walked away from Eli and Loki, firing repulsors. He shrugged Teddy off though and ignored Tony’s ticklish advance; he was still conscious of what was going, and knew Eli and Loki were up to no good. It swung an arm back and threw the broken walls and asphalt at the boys. Eli hurriedly pushed the syringe and the now empty tube into Loki’s hands. Hands free, he brought up his shield and stood in front of Loki, digging his heels into the ground to brace himself. The debris hit, clanging against the shield and pushing Eli back a step, then another, one more before he found his balance again.

“That’s not Vibranium,” Loki commented, nothing snide but said more-so out of interest.

“Nope, but it does just fine,” Eli replied, a smile in his tone. “Can you cover me?”

Loki nodded and handed the syringe to the boy. Once Eli had a grip on it, Loki transformed with ease, shortened his height, changed his clothes to a red, white, and blue get up, and a shield. Eli looked a little taken aback, the surprise reading through his mask. Loki held up a syringe that matched the real one and his smug little smile rippled the cloth.

“Cover,” he repeated childishly, and Eli nodded cautiously.

Their attention was turned back to the robust drug dealer, batting its fists at Teddy and Tommy while Billy held it in place. Eli and Loki began sprinting towards it, both a mirror image of each other. The monster’s eyes drew to them and he let out an angry roar as he saw doubles. He tried to move his legs again, and Wiccan let out a strained sigh as the spell whined at his fingers. The blue glow around the dealer’s legs flickered and Wiccan began to lose his grip. His mumbling became clearer, louder, the mantra of his focus building again. The glow grew past his knees, up to his mid-thigh and firmly held the monster in place. Meanwhile, Loki and Eli split to flank the beast on either side. The mutant flew another handful of rubble at both of them, as they were still out of reach. Loki dodged, just barely, and rolled away while Eli brought up his shield to block the debris.

“Here!” Loki shouted, throwing his illusion of a shield at the beast. While the shield wouldn’t have hit regardless, the throw was damned pitiful and only landed at his large feet after it skidded a good yard. He could hear Tony laugh over the intercom. “Shut up, Stark.”

“I didn’t say a word.” He chuckled. “Watch yourself!”

Despite the shield not hitting its intended target, the beast turned to Loki’s shouts. He lifted his hands above his head and slammed them down, kicking up debris and rubble again. Eli took that moment, as he was awkwardly hunched over, to put his plan into action. He sprinted towards him and jumped up on his back. Eli stumbled a little, lost his footing but regained it as he discarded his shield to hold onto the enlarged man’s shoulders. The monster straightened himself up at the feeling of someone grappling along his back, and tried to shrug Eli off as he had with Teddy. He succeeded, but Hulkling was there to grab Eli before he fell to the ground. Gripping him by the collar, Hulkling flew back up to his shoulders, attempting to position Eli again. The beast swung his arms, tried to bat at them but Wiccan shouted something, the spell he’d been mumbling most likely, and the arms stopped too.

“Quickly!” Loki shouted, phasing back into his regular form.

Hulkling dropped Eli onto the beast’s shoulders and he stuck the syringe into his neck, plunging the serum into his bloodstream. For a moment, it didn’t seem to work. Wiccan’s spell broke and he collapsed onto the ground. Eli held on for dear life as the muscles and flesh around him rippled with the newly injected serum. The drug dealer let out a thunderous roar, fingers clenching, his breathing seizing in his throat, and then nothing. His legs folded at the knees, and the rest of his body came lumbering down. Speed dashed to Wiccan’s side and Loki teleported away to Iron Man’s. Hulkling snatched Eli off the beast’s back before he hit the ground, rolling over onto his back as he bounced.

“JARVIS, scan him,” Tony said.

“ _Already halfway finished, sir._ ”

The incredible vital signs the mutant dealer had been showing before were receding, his heart rate slowing. The guy was unconscious, amazingly, and if taken to a hospital before downtown, he’d survive the overdose.

“He’s down for the count,” Tony radioed over the intercom. “Everyone accounted for?”

“I’ve got the kid,” Hulkling announced.

“Bee’s a little off balance, but he’s good. Me too,” said Speed.

Outside the building, several more news caster vans had pulled up around the block as well as a dozen more cops. They looked a little confused, whether they should go in and book the hulk-sized drug dealer and let the kids leave, or take the kids with them. A group of special ops funneled into the building, guns up and ready for anything. The New York Police Department, on the other hand, had their fingers loosely wrapped around their guns, shoulders tense. Superheroes may have been common crop these days, but unauthorized ones were a different story.

“We’re getting some sour looks,” Hulkling noted as he landed, simultaneously putting Eli down. “We should probably go soon.”

Speed didn’t argue, handing off Wiccan to Teddy as soon as Eli had two feet on the ground. Teddy shuffled Billy into his arms comfortably before doing a quick headcount. Loki took the time to snap a picture by himself again, next to the three regular-sized drug dealers handcuffed together on the side.

“Are we taking stars and stripes with us?” Tony asked as Loki briskly made his way over to the group.

“Might as well,” he pursed his lips, looking Eli up and down. “So we don’t have to repeat ourselves. You, take our hands.”

Eli did as he was told, taking Iron Man’s metal hand and Hulkling’s gnarled one. Before the press could push through the barrier of police, they were gone with a whisper of Loki’s spell.

 

\- - -

 

Cassie and Kate were lounging on the couch, the local news splayed across the screen as they repeated footage of the second appearance of the so-called Young Avengers as well as their success and new teammate. Only a second after they’d disappeared from the television did they appear in the living room, trailing in dust and dirt and a new straggler along with them. Eli almost doubled over and Tony patted him on the back, flipping his faceplate up.

“Yeah, you’ll get used to that.”

“How is Billy?” Loki asked, rushing over to Teddy.

“I’m fine… don’t baby me,” he managed to quirk a smile at the other mage. “I just need some rest.”

“You’ll have it, after we have a little conversation with them,” Loki jabbed a thumb behind him, looking over his shoulder to the couch where Cassie and Kate were sitting. They were draped over the back of the furniture now, watching the group with eager eyes. “And this one.”

Eli used the back on an armchair to keep himself from falling over, the teleportation disorienting him more than he realized it would. He figured it would be alright to take off the mask, as it was stifling him now. The red eyewear came off first, a plastic bit, before pulling off the blue cloth covering the rest of his face.

“So,” Kate started, patting her hands against the couch cushions. “About our induction.”

“I believe I stated before, we weren’t looking for new members,” Loki crossed his arms over his chest. “Five is what we were looking for, a small group we can trust.”

“You can trust us,” said Cassie, almost insulted.

“Your friend tried to blackmail me about two hours ago,” Tony pointed to Kate.

“Yeah, that still stands.”

“And what about me?” Eli chimed in.

“We’ve actually seen him in combat,” Teddy shrugged, fading back to his normal size and skin tone. “And he’s not half bad. Clearly you’ve got a thing for Captain America.”

“My grandfather, actually,” Eli corrected. “Back in Vietnam, they injected him with the same serum they gave Steve Rogers. This was my grandfather’s uniform, but the shield is a replica of Roger’s old one.”

“So you’ve got the super soldier serum in you too? It’s hereditary?” Tony asked.

“No, I was actually born without it…” Eli looked down at the ground. “But a few years ago, I got mugged on my way home from school, caught a knife to the stomach and almost bled out. My grandfather donated his blood to save me.”

“But you’ve still got the workings of a super soldier, yes?” Loki asked, intrigued. “I wondered. Not many mortals can take a beating like you did. What is your name?”

“Eli Bradley,” he grinned and held out his hand, but Loki never took it. “Am I no good either?”

“At least you’ve got powers,” Tommy said.

“Cassie has the same powers as Ant Man,” Kate huffed. “And I’m as good a shot as Barton when it comes to archery.”

“The point,” Loki interrupted. “Is that we are not looking for new members.”

“Why not?”

The question came from Tony, of all people, and Loki turned on his heel slowly. The look he gave the engineer was not a pleasant one. Tony put up his hands in defense.

“It was just a question.”

“An unnecessary one.”

“Actually, I kind of agree with Tony,” Billy, who’d been relatively quiet until now, spoke up. “A super soldier, a supposedly skilled archer, and a greater shape shifter than you or Teddy; it sounds like the original make up of the Avengers.”

“I think what Loki’s worried about is the backlash that we’ll start getting from the news. Some people are really into what we’re doing, like Eli, Cassie, and Kate, but we aren’t trying to start like… an uprising or something. We’re just trying to prove ourselves to S.H.I.E.L.D. really.”

“That’s what we want to do,” Cassie said, putting a hand to her chest. “My parents and Kate’s, they don’t believe we need superheroes; we want to prove them wrong.”

“And I just want to prove my worth, that I can carry the name of my grandfather’s legacy proudly,” Eli added, folding his arms over his chest.

Tony gave Loki a knowing look, and he sighed, looking to Tommy who only shrugged. They had a point, but they hadn’t expected this thing to get so big so quickly when they started the idea in the first place.

“Are we in favor of allowing them a bit of a trial, then?” Loki asked, turning to the rest of the team. “To see if they mesh well with us.”

Both Billy and Tony nodded immediately, Tommy shrugged again but grinned, and Teddy was the last to give a firm nod of his head.

“Downstairs then,” Loki announced, putting his hands on his hips. He offered the three new members a snarky grin. “We’ll see if you have worth.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So like an absolute dingus I forgot I was suppose to update on Saturday - so! This week will be another double update!
> 
> Comments, concerns, constructive criticism, questions, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comments!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: May 8th


	11. a full house

The call came around one o’ clock in the morning, and Obadiah Stane rolled over in his bed to blindly paw for his cellphone on the nightstand. He almost knocked over the glass of water during the effort, but eventually wrapped his fingers around the latest Stark phone Stark Industries had to offer.

Putting it up to his ear, Obadiah grumbled, “This better be important.”

“Good morning, Mr. Stane,” the voice greeted plainly.

When he didn’t recognize the voice, he pulled the phone away to look at the caller I.D. but it came up unknown. Even the number didn’t show up. Obadiah put the phone back to his ear.

“It would be a good morning if I were still asleep. Who is this?”

“Director Nick Fury, I’m sure you’ve heard of me.”

It only took a moment for the name to register, and when it did, Obadiah rolled onto his back and shifted so that he was sitting up straighter, shoulders brushing the coolness of his headboard. He frowned at first before his face twisted into something wickedly amused.

“Heard of you?” He chuckled. “Your name has come up more times this week than I’ve been pleased about. To what do I owe the pleasure of talking to you personally?”

“A favor. A pretty simple one, actually, that even a man of your stature should be able to do it,” Fury explained. “I need you to lay off that shipment coming in today by train.”

“What shipment?”

“Let’s skip the part where you play dumb and I tell you about how I know everything. This is serious, Stane. That shipment, with Howard Stark’s pet project. I need to ask you to stop the delivery.”

“Am I allowed to ask why?” Obadiah chuckled.

“We’ve got intelligence telling us that there’s a hit order on it.” The CEO began to laugh. “By Victor Von Doom.” The laughing stopped. “Now that I’ve got your attention, how about stopping that train before we do it for you?”

“Well, I’m pleased to know you decided to ask me so politely,” Obadiah let out a heavy sigh. “But I’m sorry to say that’s a no can do, Mr. Fury. Business, you know how it is.”

“Yeah, I know how it is,” Director Fury ended his call with a click and a dial tone. He waited a few moment before picking up the phone again to call in Barton and Romanov’s squad. They were already in place and simply needed the go ahead.

Obadiah listened to the dial tone for a few seconds before the phone automatically disconnected. He chuckled quietly, shaking his head as he dialed into his phone. A yawn escaped him as the phone rang twice before someone picked it up.

“You won’t believe who just called me,” Obadiah grinned. He lulled his head back to rest on the headboard. “And he’s sending a surprise party your way.”

 

\- - -

 

Kate’s bow stood thirty-two inches axle to axle, sat around four pounds, and flared out at the edges like a spider, or snake fangs. It looked dangerous enough without the arrows, which she fished out of her duffel bag she’d brought in today. They were carbon arrows, a pack of twelve which Tony offered to expand if they allowed her on the team.

After the grand tour yesterday, the team sat Cassie, Kate, and Eli down to let them know what was going on. Loki made sure to emphasize that this wasn’t some sort of grand stand against S.H.I.E.L.D. and that they only wanted to prove themselves to them. They needed to keep this secret, from everyone, and they couldn’t just walk up to the front door of Stark Mansion, or hop over the backyard fence, and come in. When the initial idea of them staying in Stark Mansion was declined, Loki and Billy offered to teleport them in and out whenever they needed to. A simple text would suffice. It worked well enough today, when they all converged again to show the team what they were made of. Kate had offered to go first, if only because Tommy had made a snarky comment about she being the biggest liability.

They were given a quick explanation of how the training simulator worked, how to active it and set their settings from the computers outside. Kate picked Swordsman as her enemy, confidently, and walked into the training room to start. She chose an outside setting, nothing too exotic but thickly populated with trees, and medium difficulty. Everything materialized as JARVIS started the session, and Kate’s eyes lit up. She scanned the area, searching for Swordsman, one hand clenched around her bow and the other at her side, ready.

Outside, Loki hummed and tilted his head to one side. “Curious.”

“What is?” Cassie asked.

“She chose a long ranged weapon yet holds a defensive, close-combat stance.”

“Kate takes jujitsu classes on the side,” the blonde explained with a smile. “She’s really good at it too.”

Swordsman appeared behind her, rolling out from behind a thick trunk of a tree, and attacked. He swung from below, an upward cut, and Kate turned on her heel. As he brought his sword up, Kate brought her free hand down, hitting him in the wrist. Swordsman fumbled with his sword, but before he could recover Kate moved in closer, grabbing him by the shoulder. She kicked her leg out, sweeping him off his feet and drove him to the ground. Swordsman grabbed Kate and took her with him, both falling to the floor and he rolled them. She hooked her leg around one of his and when they rolled again so that she was on bottom, she jerked her leg and caused a small pocket of space between them. Kate pulled a hand behind her and grabbed one of her arrows, using the pocket of space to jam it into his chest. He rolled off and Kate took that moment to run, but not after pulling the arrow out. The hit hadn’t been vital, so the illusion of Swordsman stayed put. He kicked a leg out and Kate swiftly jumped over it, using the same arrow as before and pulling it into the bow’s strings. As it nocked, she turned and let the arrow loose, a bulls-eye in the chest cavity. Swordsman deteriorated, and another appeared with vigor.

Kate’s tactics were spontaneous, but well-thought out as she proved each time a new Swordsman appeared. Sometimes she would start close, up in his face, but it was never for long. Despite the name, Swordsman had an uncanny skill in unarmed combat. She would hold her own for a while, catch him off balance, run off, and kill shot. Sometimes she would use the terrain to her advantage, climbing up the trees and picking him off from up there. That didn’t last long, as it seemed he came equip with his gift from Mandarin. A highly advanced blade of different specialties depending on which button he pressed on the hilt of the sword. It provided him with long ranged attacks, along with his throwing daggers. Kate eventually ended her session after Swordsman cut through the tree she’d been hiding in and she fell. His next attack would have been fatal, and JARVIS stopped the program.

“ _Sixteen minutes and forty-two point zero six seconds, Ms. Bishop,_ ” JARVIS announced in a pleased tone. “ _Very good for your first try._ ”

“Better than the boys?” She asked, out of breath as she picked herself.

“ _Thomas broke his nose during his first attempt running into a magical barrier produced by Amora the Enchantress._ ”

Kate was still laughing as she exited the arena.

Cassie asked if she could go next, and Eli didn’t object; he’d already fought alongside the team and he opted to go last. She chose Abomination, an interesting choice Teddy noted aloud, but she only smiled and unzipped her hoodie. Underneath her jacket and sweatpants she wore a red and black one piece that looked very similar to Scott Lang’s uniform. Presumably, it would stretch and shrink with her, as to alleviate any wardrobe problems during her resizing. She went with an easy difficulty, and the popular cityscape. Cassie had never actually tried her powers offensively, only shrank and grew within the confinements of her bedroom. As the virtual city escalated, Cassie looked up at the ceiling to gauge how big she could grow without putting a hole into Tony’s lab floor. He’d assured her the space between each floor was pretty thick, but she’d keep herself to an agreeable size, just in case. Some of the skyscrapers cut off at the ceiling, and Cassie brought her attention back to ground level.

Cassie’s didn’t have a fighting style, that much was painfully obvious, but her strength and control was incredible. She didn’t seem to have a problem shape shifting on the fly and was hyperaware of her surroundings as well as her enemy. During her session, she did minimal damage to the cityscape, something deserving of praise, and held her own well against Abomination. Teddy said something about how she could’ve taken a medium difficulty easily. She’d definitely need a bit of training in the department of offensive maneuvers, but that wasn’t enough to deter an outright rejection of her joining. In fact, she would’ve been extremely helpful during their last fiasco.

“ _Fourteen minutes and ten point one nine seconds,_ ” JARVIS said after Cassie had finished. “ _May I suggest speaking with Theodore and Loki on close combat training?_ ”

“Thank you, JARVIS,” Cassie grinned up at the ceiling, shrinking down to her regular size before exiting the room.

“I think JARVIS is excited about new members,” Billy chuckled, elbowing Tony in the side.

“He likes the company,” Tony smiled. “Okay, up next – ”

“I believe we’ve already seen what Eli can do,” Loki interrupted, playing with the monitors beside Tony. He glanced at Eli out of his peripheral before returning to what he was doing. “I wish to speak with you, rather.”

“Okay,” Eli shrugged, folding his arms over his chest as he leaned against one of the counters. “About what?”

“Mutant growth hormones,” he stated plainly. “Yesterday, you spoke very extensively about it. I’m curious how you knew so much about it. Have you taken down MGH drug dealers before?”

“No, I,” he paused, pressing his lips into a thin line. The room stayed quiet and his heartbeat sounded too loud in his eardrums, as if the rest of the group could hear it clearly. “I… used to take MGH, before the accident. My grandfather and I were walking home from the grocery store one evening and some punks threw a brick at his head. I stood up to them and naturally got my ass handed to me, but before they left us alone they told me about mutant growth hormones. They said I had spunk, but lacked the strength to back it up.

“I never thought about taking it until I caught my grandfather looking through his old Captain America paraphernalia. He’d fathered my mother before they injected him with the serum, so I hadn’t been born with his gift, but I wanted to do him proud. So I took it, became addicted, did a lot of stupid shit, and got stabbed for it.”

He finished in a rush, eyes trained on the ground. When no one said anything, Eli looked up at Loki carefully. His face gave nothing away, but his eyes churned without judgment.

“I don’t think we can technically reject anyone based off of past mistakes,” Billy finally said, trying to ease Eli.

“Yeah, I accidentally vaporized my school,” the speedster grinned.

“You did what?” Tony jerked around to look at Tommy. “How?”

“My little secret.” He offered the engineer a shit-eating grin.

“And it wasn’t so much an accident,” Billy mused, giving Tommy a look. “I almost killed someone – and that  _was_  an accident – and Teddy spent most of high school impersonating superheroes.”

“I doubt you need a rundown on the two of us,” said Tony, motioning to himself and Loki. “Point is, as long as you’re off the stuff now – ”

“I am.”

“Then you’re good.” Eli smiled and nodded to Tony. He offered a nod back to him before looking at Loki. “So?”

Loki stayed quiet but wasn’t bothering with the monitors anymore. It wouldn’t make much sense to reject people from the group of initial rejects, but they’d also planned to keep this a small operation. Like a teenage rebellion, but with more purpose. At least, they hoped it had purpose. Loki licked his lips before biting the inside of his cheek.

“We’ll need a lot of training before we go out again as a team,” Loki said, tilting his head up.

“Is that a yes?” Kate asked, a grinning blossoming across her face.

“If no one has any immediate objections, it is a yes,” he stated.

Both Teddy and Billy shook their heads, looking rather excited about adding more versatile members into the mix. Tommy didn’t object as he threw an arm around Cassie, offering her a dumb grin that faltered as Kate smacked him in the back of the head. Loki glanced over his shoulder to look at Tony, shaking his head and shrugging. If they hadn’t surprised S.H.I.E.L.D. with yesterday’s drug bust, they’d be plenty surprised the next time they entered the playing field.

Eli and Kate left about two hours after their initiation; Kate’s father had called her home and Eli had promised his mother he’d stop at the store on the way home for groceries. Cassie opted to stay a while longer, Teddy said he’d give her a few pointers before she left about fighting. Before Billy send Kate and Eli to their respective locations, they set up a schedule for training revolving around when the three could make it without interruptions. Though they were welcomed to come around at anytime, Billy emphasized.

Tony ordered pizza for lunch and while they waited on the delivery the group sat around the television, basking in the reports about themselves. S.H.I.E.L.D. didn’t hold a press conference about the second sighting of the Young Avengers, and as far as Tony knew neither had Stark Industries. The talk shows had supposed experts on with topics ranging from the psychological reason why the kids were doing what they were doing to whether or not they could be trusted to what sort of repercussions this would cause.

“We should really stick around one time and let them know what we’re trying to accomplish,” Billy suggested, fidgeting with his hoodie. “And also so they stop calling me Asgardian.”

“I think that would be a good idea, yes,” Loki agreed. “Especially now that we’ve accumulated more people.”

One news station replayed S.H.I.E.L.D.’s press conference from the other day, and while they were adamant about letting everyone know they weren’t affiliated with them, they didn’t too much else to harm their reputation. Stark Industries’ conference on the other hand was a different story. Tony shut that off when they went to reply that too, switching to another channel.

“Aren’t you going to take over Stark Industries in a few years?” Cassie asked, nothing intrusive, simply curious.

“Yeah…” Tony sighed, sinking into the couch. “Yeah. I’ll be fixing their war tune though, don’t worry.”

“That’s good to hear,” she smiled, leaning back in her seat. “Then maybe people like my step-dad will stop being so uppity about superheroes. He firmly believes in what Stark Industries is now.”

“Hopefully I won’t be the one to do that though. Maybe Iron Man will inspire him.” The doorbell rang and Tony offered Cassie a wink before getting up to answer the door.

The news report switched to something else, for once, a breaking news report the woman said. In the upper right hand corner was a video clip of a train wreck, cargo cars strewn far from the tracks. The video enlarged to full screen as the reporter spoke over it. Many of the cars were crushed, the lids torn open like paper. Some of them looked to have exploded, but from the inside. The camera on the helicopter flying over the scene zoomed in on one of the cars. It read Stark Industries in white, the sideways check mark logo and the last half of Industries burnt off in an explosion.

“ _Early this morning, a cargo train carrying supplies for Stark Industries had been hijacked._   _Sources say the train had strewn from its path after station managers reported the train being late for its checkpoint._ ”

“Okay, pizzas here and – ”

“Tony shut up, you need to listen to this,” Tommy said, grabbing the remote off the coffee table and raising the volume.

“ _About twenty miles off course, police finally found the train in pieces at five fifty-eight this morning. No one was found inside the train and police are still searching for anyone in the area. There is also an ongoing investigation down the railway path the train had been taking. Several cars were lined with explosives from the inside, though police say that some of them haven’t gone off yet and caution is advised when approaching the scene. Those cars, however, are empty of any cargo and the tops have been pulled away. No information on what the train had been carrying as of yet. Evidence reads, however, that the attacks made on the train are yet another one of Dr. Doom’s, though it isn’t certain as to who put the explosives inside the train and why._ ”

Loki turned away from the television to look over the couch at Tony. His jaw clenched as he eyed the live video coming through and he fidgeted from one foot to the next. Eventually, he moved to set the four boxes on the table and fished his phone out of his back pocket.

“I have to make a call,” he ground out, briskly making his way to the basement.

Obadiah’s voicemail greeted him three times before he finally picked up.

“Hey, Tony! How’re you doing, little man?” He greeted, sounding a little out of breath. In the background, Tony could hear a lot of white noise and chatter.

“Hey, Obie. I just saw the news – ”

“Don’t worry about it kiddo, I’m taking care of everything right now.” Obadiah assured.

“That’s not what I’m calling about, I don’t care what the press says,” Tony hopped up on his work table. “I don’t remember seeing or hearing anything about a delivery.”

Obadiah sat silent for a while, too long, because Tony interrupted him as soon as he began to say, “Tony – ”

“What was in those crates?” As he spoke, Tony balanced his phone between his cheek and shoulder, opening up the monitor in front of him.

“Nothing important, just a few crates of weapon parts we need for the armory division,” he sighed. “Although I’m not too sure what Doom or whatever his name is needs that for. It’s nothing though, Tony, don’t worry about it. A drop in the bucket, we’ll get more.”

“Why don’t I see it in the records though.”

“It’s in there.”

“I’m looking at the records right now,” said Tony, scrolling through the delivery records with his finger. “I don’t see them. Not when whatever it is was ordered, what was in them, where they were heading, and time of arrival – nothing.”

“What?” Obadiah sounded surprised. He paused a moment and the chatter in the background died down. He must have moved to another room. There was typing in the background then, as if Obadiah was checking himself. “You’re right… I put that order in myself though. Someone must be tampering with the system.”

“That’s impossible, I put that system on Stark Industries’ private server; only people with access can get into it, you can’t hack it.”

The man on the other line chuckled. “Tony, nothing’s impossible to get into. I’ll look into it. In the mean time, I need you to stop by sometime this week – say Thursday?”

“I’m kinda busy,” Tony mumbled, closing down the files. “Why, what’s up?”

“A few big wigs are coming for a visit, I thought it’d be nice if they met the soon to be owner of Stark Industries,” he answered. “Come on, kiddo. Take a break from that tinkering and stuff, it’ll only take a few hours.”

Tony kicked his feet a little, watching his sneakers in the dull lab lighting as he thought about it. He really didn’t want to go, not when the team was just starting to gain some traction. But he couldn’t neglect his real world responsibilities either; no one knew he was Iron Man.

“Yeah, Thursday. Have Happy come around nine.”

“Great! I’ll see you then, Tony. And don’t worry about this little mess, I’ll have it cleaned up before tomorrow.”

“Yeah okay,” the brunette sighed. “See you Thursday.”

The phone clicked dead and his own disconnected as he tossed it onto the table. Tony carded his fingers through his hair roughly, making the ends stick in odd places. He knew his technology inside and out, especially Stark Industries’ servers. No one could hack into it, except Tony because he created it. He reopened the files again, looked through the delivery logs. The last one was three months ago, and the one before that six months. Everything Stark Industries did was internalized for the most part, Howard liked to keep it that way. Probably so S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn’t dig into their business. But every so often they needed something from their warehouses that needed to be delivered.

“JARVIS, open data entry logs for this file please.”

“ _Yes, sir._ ”

Another window opened up and entries began flooding line after line.

“Condense to the last six months,” Tony corrected. The entries deleted themselves, and started over. This time only seven entries came up. “Thanks, JARVIS.”

But none of these entries matched any kind of date Obadiah would’ve shot for. He knew five of them were for sure Howard’s before he died. The last entry was three months ago, and it stated it had already been delivered two days after the entry was filed.

“Stark?” Loki’s chic voice surprised Tony, causing him to flinch a little. He turned around and saw him waiting in the doorway, a surprise.

“Usually you let yourself in,” he chided playfully.

“I figured you needed a little privacy,” he offered a small smile. “Is everything alright?”

Tony nodded, slipping off the workbench and waving a hand to minimize the files on the screen. “Yeah, it’s fine. Just wanted to touch base about what was going on with the cargo train.”

“It’s curious that Doctor Doom would target one of your trains.”

“Yeah…” Tony pursed his lips and looked away to his worktable instead. His hand reached out to a stray bolt and he rolled it between his fingers.

Silence filled the room, slightly awkward and completely stifling. Loki wanted to ask more about the fiasco playing on the news now, one question in particular hanging heavily in the air, but he never asked. Tony seemed tense enough, frustrated even. Instead, Loki took a step into the lab and waited for the engineer to shoo him. He seemed preoccupied with the bolt, although he noticed as the other made his way quietly to his side.

“Who did you call?” Loki asked, not the question he wanted to.

“Obadiah, I’m sure you’ve seen him on the news. He’s my godfather, sort of,” Tony sighed, tossing the bolt across the table. It bounced too far and off the table, onto the floor. He could hear it roll to a slow stop. “I have a meeting with him on Thursday, but he said it’d only take a few hours so I should be back to catch some training.”

“Do what you must,” Loki mused, raising his hand a little ways off the work bench. The bolt that had flown off popped up in a glow of green and floated back onto the table gently. “You are not Iron Man to the public eye, only Tony Stark.”

“You make that sound like it’s a bad thing,” he quirked an eyebrow at the other. “Whose name was it who got you the best soft serve in the city?”

Loki laughed, the memory of that day not a fond one but it had its moments. “I’ll have to keep that in mind the next time we go out. Until that time, though, I wouldn’t mind a homemade dessert.”

Tony snorted and looked over at Loki, who was giving him faux doe eyes, as innocent as those mischievous green eyes got. “Oh, so what happened to I can’t bribe you with ice cream?”

“This is different, I’m asking for it this time.”

“Oh yeah, you’re asking for something alright,” Tony teased and Loki laughed again. Between the laughter, Tony’s stomach gurgled loudly and he put a hand to his belly. “Come on, let’s go back up. My body demands sustenance.”

“That was a good impression of Thor,” Loki smirked. “Do another.”

“Shut up.” Tony playfully shoved him in the shoulder.

By the time they arrived back to the living room, the channel had changed to a mid-day talk show. The pleasurable topic of the Young Avengers was back on, easing the tension of the news report from before. Tony announced that he’d have to go out for a meeting on Thursday that week, and they still planned for Kate, Cassie, and Eli to come in for training that day. Tony asked them to let Eli and Kate know that he’d have something special for them when they got in Thursday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, concerns, constructive criticism, questions, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comments!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: May 11


	12. supernova

Tony spent Wednesday night searching through delivery files for Stark Industries. The data files were the same as before, no log on the delivery order and no log that it had even been put in. The hunch of whether or not this was S.H.I.E.L.D.’s doing floated in the back of his mind, but there was still the question of why. The bombs lining the inner workings of the cars sounded like S.H.I.E.L.D. but the stolen goods had been Doom’s style. Tony had half the mind to go to S.H.I.E.L.D. and talk to Fury himself, if he would even see him now, but that was too risky. Fury had asked him for information about the team, and Tony had all but flipped him the bird on that idea. Maybe figuratively anyway. Fury didn’t owe him anything, the only thing Tony had done was “infiltrate” the team. Thor, on the other hand, and Scarlet Witch – they could be a viable source of information. There was still the whole problem about contacting them discreetly.

“JARVIS, scan the data logs again please.”

“ _Yes, sir._ ”

Wednesday night turned to Thursday morning and Tony figured he’d need a little bit of rest before the meeting. While he visited Stark Industries, he’d see about connecting to the private server manually. Before leaving the lab, he took a small flash drive with him to take along tomorrow. In the living room, Billy, Teddy, Tommy, and Eli were circled around the television, watching the end of a film. Eli had told his mom he’d be sleeping over at a friend’s house, not a complete lie. He wanted an early start on training. Tony bid them goodnight and headed upstairs. On the way to his room he passed Loki’s, the door open. He was lying on his back, a thick book a third of the way open resting on his chest. An arm laid across his face, but he looked to be sleeping. Surrounding him were other large tomes, some closed with open books piled on top of them. They sunk into the bed, probably straining the springs in the mattress. Tony wondered if he should wake him, tell him about his hunches, but thought better of it. He didn’t see Loki sleep often. Tony continued on to his room.

In the morning, coming down for a quick breakfast around eight fifty, Tony caught sight of Eli eating alone at the table in the kitchen. He looked well rested, despite having stayed up with the twins and Teddy. He supposed it came along with having super soldier blood in him. They greeted one another while Tony popped two bagel halves into the toaster.

“So I worked on a little something for you and Kate when you guys start your training today,” Tony said, turning around to face Eli. He leaned against the counter top, hands bracing themselves on the corners to hoist him up onto the edge to sit. “I asked Kate if she could redo your jacket, pack it with Kevlar so it doesn’t tear as easily, and I modified your shield. It still isn’t Vibranium, but titanium alloy holds up pretty well I think.”

“No way?” Eli looked up from his cereal bowl. “Thanks!”

“No problem, you three are part of the team now. Gotta hook you up with the goods,” he winked, nudging the refrigerator door open with his shoe. “I made Kate a bow with the same material with some special grade arrows I think she’ll like.”

“She’s a pretty good archer,” Eli said, fishing his spoon around in his bowl. “Kind of a liability though.”

“Why, because she doesn’t have any powers?” Tony asked, snatching the strawberry jam from the refrigerator. “I don’t either.”

“You’ve got a suit of armor though.”

“And without that I’m just a human.”

“A really smart human,” Eli pointed the spoon at Tony.

The engineer shrugged. “Still a liability though.”

The doorbell rang, interrupting their conversation. The toaster popped and Tony gingerly plucked the hot bagel slices out. He slathered the jam onto them hastily and didn’t bother to put the jar back, or the knife into the sink. Squishing the two halves together, he licked the excess jam off and waved to Eli as he exited the kitchen and headed for the door.

“I’ll see you guys after work,” he said between a mouthful of bagel.

Eli waved back, not bothering to speak around his spoonful of cereal.

Outside, waiting on the front step, was Tony’s chauffeur Happy. Howard had hired him to take Tony to and from school, wherever he wanted to go and, like Jarvis, Tony had grown attached to him too. Once or twice, outside the city, Tony had stolen one of Howard’s hotrods and raced Happy down a relatively empty coastline road. Tony high-fived him on the way down the steps and they both walked to the limousine that had muscled its way through the front gates around the already large crowd of press.

“They’re asking about the cargo train fiasco,” Happy commented, opening the back door for Tony.

“Yeah,” he sighed, swallowing his bite before continuing, “I’ve got a few questions about it myself.”

Stark Industries wasn’t held within city limits, something about the company sharing the same cityscape as S.H.I.E.L.D.’s headquarters didn’t sit well with the government officials. It didn’t keep them from making snarky remarks at each other during press conferences, but it kept the arguing to a minimal in the public eye. Centered on a large expanse of land about an hour and a half out from Manhattan in Mitchell Field sat Stark Industries. A three story building above ground with several, high level security floors below, Stark Industries divided into three sectors. An ecology division, the most recent of the three, devised as a publicity stunt to keep environmental nuts happy. It ran on Howard’s arc reactor project, something that had been left alone long before his passing. From it, however, Tony managed to build his Iron Man suit. That sector sat on the very edge, structured like a bio dome. The three floors above ground were the economy division, fixed with handling bank records, stocks, legal fiascos, and employment inquiries. It acted as the face, or mask as Tony liked to call it, of Stark Industries. The weapons division was split up, one used for testing and government use in the western part of the country, and this one in New York state to focus predominantly on Howard’s infamous serum. Tony didn’t have the authority just yet to cancel all funding towards that part of the company, but just walking on the ground that shielded its existence made his stomach churn.

“Good morning, Mr. Stark,” the woman at the front desk greeted as the brunette walked through the doors Happy opened for him.

“Morning Margret, I’m here for a meeting with Obadiah and a few big wig whatevers,” Tony motioned flippantly in the air with one hand.

“Right this way sir,” the receptionist, Margret, said as she removed herself from her chair. “Mr. Stane hasn’t arrived yet, but he called a few minutes ago and said that he’s on his way.”

Tony nodded and followed Margret down the hall and into an elevator. Once inside, she scanned her lanyard on a small device above the buttons before pressing the number three. It lit up, and the doors shut with a soft shift and a ping.

Outside, several armored vehicles were spotted driving down Oak Street and Quentin Roosevelt Boulevard, merging in at Oak and Meadow.

At ten minutes to eleven, Tony had spun around in his office chair about two dozen times and it looked as if the handful of big wig corporate CEOs in the room with him were starting to follow his lead. He tapped away at his Stark phone idly, checking the time, the weather, his messages, his e-mail, and then back to checking the time. Ten fifty-two in the morning. Tony sighed, looking up at the rest of the table. There were three other men in the room, filling up the empty spaces at the long, glass table. Fluorescent lights filled every other ceiling tile were turned off for now. The light flooding in from the glass windows on the lower right hand side of the room was enough. Tony turned around in his chair to look out at the scenery. Hofstra University was just across the way, and to the right a rather empty looking Oak Street. Come to think of it, Happy hadn’t run into much traffic on the way here either. For a Thursday morning without excuse of a holiday, it seemed weird. Obadiah should’ve been here by now.

“I’ll be right back, I’m going to try ringing Mr. Stane,” Tony said, throwing on a fake smile to charm his guests. Those who were awake nodded and mumbled an affirmative noise.

He left his chair and walked briskly out of the room, phone already dialing as the door to the meeting room shut. It rang about six times before the familiar voicemail spoke in his ear. Tony didn’t bother leaving a message, he disconnected and redialed the number. On the fifth try, Tony began leaving a message.

“Hey Obie, it’s Tony. We had a meeting scheduled today, talking to some ancient CEOs who’re falling asleep right now in the meeting hall. Margret said you’d called in like thirty-five minutes ago, where are – ”

From inside the meeting room came an explosion, the sound of glass shattering and wood splintering. It blew open the door and the force threw Tony across the hallway, into the adjacent wall. Smoke and debris billowed out of the broken doorframe, as well as the sound of a man screaming, a CEO, followed by a gunshot and silence.

 

\- - -

 

Hulkling crashed into the corner of a mom and pop diner, destroying the interior as he scrambled for purchase. His claws sunk into the hardwood flooring, scraping and splintering it to ruin. Quickly, he brought himself onto his feet and lunged out of the hole he’d just made, back into the street. To his right he heard a car horn from afar, a whiney sound as it came closer. Teddy turned to look and found a mustard yellow SUV sailing towards him down the avenue. He braced himself, bent his knees and threw his hands up to catch it. Two steps back and he was balanced and ready to take four bounding steps forward to throw the car back. Cassie rolled to dodge it, shrinking as she did. The car slammed into the spot she’d been occupying seconds before, and she dashed off towards Teddy, growing as she did. At about twice the size as Teddy, a growth she’d gotten comfortable with, Cassie threw her arm back and swung forward towards the green shape shifter. Hulkling braced himself but ended up tumbling halfway down the avenue. Cassie looked rather pleased with herself.

“Okay… okay, time,” Teddy heaved, throwing a hand into the air. He stayed on his back, trying to catch his breath. “I call for a time out.”

Cassie giggled in the distance, louder in her larger form. “Too much?”

“You’re a quick learner,” he chuckled breathlessly. Rolling onto his side, his muscles pinched a little. Not the worse feeling in the world, but it was obvious Cassie could pack quite the punch. “And a hard hitter.”

“Are you okay?” She asked, voice smaller now. When Teddy turned to look at her, she was back to being five foot four.

Teddy nodded, waving a hand at her. The cityscape around them deconstructed itself, leaving them in a plain cement room. They exited the training arena, giving the rest of the team a thumbs up.

“Who’s next?” Teddy asked, rolling his shoulders back until they cracked.

“Kate and I wanted to do a demonstration,” Loki offered, motioning towards Kate. She held her new bow, shining and painted a deep purple with a matte black finish.

“ _Excuse me, young sir,_ ” JARVIS interrupted, and didn’t continue until everyone glanced up at the ceiling. “ _I must insist you direct your attention to the monitors as something urgent has come up._ ”

The holograms flickered, closing out the live video feed to the training arena. Another video file came up, this one a newsfeed. The reporter’s full screen had just been taken up by video footage from a helicopter, showing a corporate building from an aerial view. One looked like a bio dome, unimportant at the moment as the main building taking up about three quarters of the land looked to be on fire. Several windows exploded on the second floor, fire breaking the glass as the smoke headed skyward. On the streets surrounding the building were a dozen armored vehicles idling ominously. The helicopter banked, allowing a different shot of the building. The side read Stark Industries in silver lettering, underlined by their trademark sideways check.

“Stark,” Loki’s eyes widened in fearful realization. “JARVIS, is he alright?”

“ _It seems I cannot reach Mr. Stark at this time,_ ” the A.I. replied, tone as serious as a machine could sound.

“We need to get over there,” Billy said, hands already glowing fluorescent blue. His T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers faded to his suit. Teddy shifted into his own next to him. “Now.”

“ _I would not advise this course of action,_ ” JARVIS interrupted. “ _For your own safety._ ”

“What about Stark’s safety?” Loki turned to the monitors, his own casual outfit rippling away in green and gold speckles. “Is there a way for him to put his suit on without the help of his machine?”

_“I am afraid not, sir. I highly recommend you all stay here,_ ” the computer repeated. “ _I may be a machine, but I still worry for the safety of Mr. Stark and his friends, this much has not changed between a body made of flesh and one of wires. Tony would not want you to put yourselves in unnecessary danger._ ”

“I wouldn’t say this is unnecessary,” Kate said, gesturing towards the video feed. The front doors of the building were flooded with people evacuating the scene. “This looks like a terrorist attack, and Tony’s life is at risk.”

JARVIS was silent, the monitors wavering with some sort of interference. “ _Then please allow me to assist you. I have connected to your intercom’s frequency. I have the entirety of Stark Industries mapped out in my systems and I can keep you updated on the situation from outside._ ”

“Sounds like a plan,” Tommy said, snapping on his orange tinted goggles. “Let’s not waste anymore time then.”

“You three may stay, if you wish,” Loki offered, tilting his head up to Eli, Cassie, and Kate. “This may not be the best test run for you three.”

“Like hell I’m staying here,” Kate smirked, strapping her bow onto her back. “Cassie?”

She nodded and behind her, Eli was grabbing his new shield. “Yeah, you can bet we’re coming along.”

 

\- - -

 

The hallways rang loudly with the fire alarm system, red lights spilling across the walls and smoke. Tony’s ears rang for a different reason though, the explosion deafening him. He groaned, his heartbeat sounding too loud in his ears as it fluttered quickly, erratically. The back of his head hurt as well as his lower back from the impact earlier. Something wet trickled slowly down the right side of his face and Tony raised an unsteady hand to wipe it away. His fingers came away red. He blinked rapidly, trying to get his vision to clear, but his eyes watered as Tony took in a deep breath of smoke and coughed roughly. Blindly he searched for a wall to help him steady his balance. The building shook underneath his hands and feet, throwing him against the wall. Once he was up on his feet, legs shaking in his pants suit, Tony looked down the hall, towards the meeting room. The smoke was much too thick for him to see anything in there, but he swore he could see the silhouette of a man. His Stark phone beeped at him and Tony flinched, looking too quickly to the ground; his vision swam. Tony found it a few feet away from him and he staggered towards it. The caller ID read JARVIS and Tony moved a dirty finger to swipe across the screen to answer it. Out of his peripheral, he saw the shadow again and Tony looked up.

A cloak billowed behind him as heavy footsteps loudly pressed forward through the smoke towards Tony. The face was covered by a hood, fastened to his shoulders by two gold circles. His torso was dressed in a green cloth tunic, not similar to the tunics Loki wore, and his footsteps shook the floor. They were metal, chrome, all the way up to his thigh and underneath the waving hem. Tony looked up, taking a step back whenever the other took a step forward. The head tilted up, exposing a shimmer that Tony could only assume a mask. His heart flew up into his throat.

“Mr. Stark.” The voice from behind the mask sounded human with a hint of metallic reverberation.

The smoke cleared, allowing Tony a clear view of Doctor Doom’s silver face. He didn’t wait for him to say anything else, not when his metal arms rose, glowing a dulled magenta. On unsteady legs, Tony bolted down the hall, towards the elevators, phone in hand. He could barely hear JARVIS trying to say something, but it was drowned out by a mighty blast behind him and the walls crumbling beneath Doom’s magic.

Outside, Billy teleported the team in the middle of Stark Industries’ parking lot and into a crowd of scared and scrambling employees.

“JARVIS,” Loki put a finger up to his ear, pressing against the ear piece. “Can you get a hold of Stark?”

“ _His phone has been answered, but I have yet to speak with him. His phone coordinates put him on the third floor, south wing and moving._ ”

“Get everyone to safety,” Loki turned to the rest of the team. “I’m going in to get Stark and then we deal with the problem, understood?”

“Loud and clear,” Kate answered, moving against the mass of people.

Without warning Loki disappeared, placing himself on the third floor, south wing as JARVIS had reported. He found himself in a room half blown away with three dead men in suits littering the floor. At least, two of them looked like men, the other was burnt to a crisp.

“Stark!” Loki called, clearing the smoke away with a wave of his hand.  
“ _The hallway, sir. To the right_.”

Loki sprinted out the door and took the right turn, finding a long hallway broken up in the middle. He could see the second floor and the parking lot out of the gap left behind. With ease, he jumped it, following JARVIS’s directions.  
“ _Left at your next turn, sir._ ”

The building shook and Loki lost his footing as he banked too hard to the left, hitting the far right wall. That explosion, whatever it was, didn’t feel far.

“ _I have lost connection with Mr. Stark, sir._ ”

“Damn!” Loki shoved himself off the wall and continued down the hall, running blindly. “Stark!”

Another explosion, but this time he heard his name at the end. He heard it again, clearer the second time. Loki sped up. At the next turn, he looked left and then right, the right side funneling with smoke and debris. Behind it all he saw a large, blocky silhouette.

“Stark!”

“Loki!” It was Tony’s voice, but not his body that pivoted to look at Loki.

“Oh, you’re still alive are you?” A slightly metallic voice rumbled. “How unfortunate.”

An old friend of old Loki, how quaint. “You’ll have to refresh my memory, I’ve cleared all my old contacts out with my reincarnation.”

The smoke cleared and Doctor Doom stepped out for Loki to get a clear view of his metal face, arms glowing. Loki’s heart jumped and he fought the urge to take a step back. Instead, he stood his ground and offered Doom a quirk of a smile.

“I can’t say I’m happy to see you,” Loki quipped.

Doctor Doom lifted his arms above his head, the magic in his hands brightening. “I’m glad the feeling is mutual.”

He threw a blast of magic at Loki and his illusion exploded with the connection. Behind Doctor Doom, Loki appeared at Tony’s side, grabbing him off the floor and running down the hall.

“I can’t believe my old self was friends with Doctor Doom,” Loki huffed, turning to look over his shoulder.

“Given his greeting, I really doubt you two were friends,” Tony said, struggling to keep up with Loki.

“Yeah well,” he made a face and shrugged, putting his attention forward. “Are you injured?”

“A little, but I’ll be fine. What the hell are you doing here anyway?”

“Saving your ass. JARVIS caught the newsfeed of an explosion. We thought it was a terrorist attack, but I think we’re gonna need a new plan.”

“Leaving the premises sounds like a great one.”

“Wiccan,” Loki called over the intercom. “Status?”

“Everyone’s out of the building, we think. Eli, Kate, and Cassie are moving them to a safer location and – oh shit,” Billy cut out for a moment before coming back with, “Loki, we need to get the hell out of here right now.”

“Yes, that’s come to my at – ” Something behind them exploded, and Doctor Doom’s magic lit up the hallway. “Doctor Doom is here, I have Stark, we need to leave.”

“Doombots!” Wiccan yelled into the radio. “There are trucks in the streets, about eleven or twelve, they’re full of Doombots, Loki, they’re swarming the towards the building and the employees.”

“Doombots are outside,” Loki repeated to Tony. “I need to get you to safety. Preferably back home so you can change into your suit and meet back here.”

“What happened to leaving?” Tony ducked and almost tripped if Loki hadn’t been holding onto his arm as another blast came from behind them. “We can’t stay here, Doom’s too big an enemy for us.”

“We can handle the Doombots until the Avengers arrive,” Loki explained, banking to the left. “There are civilians out – ”

The corridor exploded with another one of Doctor Doom’s attacks, sending Tony and Loki stumbling down the hall. Tony rolled further, and Loki caught himself on an open door, greeting it with his back. Doom rounded the corner, the glowing in his hands dying down.

“Loki!” Tony called, staggering upright.

Loki groaned, the air knocked out of him briefly. His vision swam but he fought against it, pushing himself up.

“Get ready!” He called to Tony as he sprinted towards him.

The building shook again, an explosion from the outside this time, and Loki slipped only to catch himself on his hands. He kept running, outstretching a hand to Tony and the brunette did the same. Behind Loki, Tony could see Doctor Doom reaching to his side, upholstering a pistol. It looked advanced, the aiming sights blinking and the barrel spinning with electricity. It whined as it powered up and just as Loki’s fingertips touched Tony’s, half of his spell spilled from his lips. Doctor Doom fired the gun, one, two, three shots. Loki choked on the last word, jerking forward. Tony lunged forward and caught him in his arms.

“Loki!” He cried, trying to keep them both up. “ _Loki_!”

The god-ling let out a shaky gasp, his whole body shuddering against Tony’s. It felt as if the air had been sucked out of his lungs, his veins draining of blood, but it was all still there. Oxygen and blood pumped through his system, but something was being painfully ripped from him, as if his flesh were peeling from his muscles, muscles away from his bones. Loki opened his mouth to scream and could find no voice to do so. His eyes widened, started to redden and tear. He forced a sound and found nothing but airy gasps. The sound around him muted, an explosion from behind dulled to a low roar. He put a hand to Tony’s chest and found nothing but his racing heartbeat. The air was beginning to stifle him, nothing but oxygen flowing. He felt naked, exposed. Mentally, he grappled for something, anything, a feeling, a touch, a whisper of magic. Nothing but Tony’s heartbeat thrummed against his fingers. He could hear him cry his name in his ear, but only barely.

“Your turn,” Doctor Doom called to Tony, putting his weapon away. His hands brightened to life again.

“What did you do to him?” Tony shouted, dragging Loki with him as he stumbled backwards.

“Silenced his silver tongue,” Doom replied vaguely. He began to raise his arms again before stopping mid-way, almost in after thought. Instead, he took to his sidearm again, opened up the cartridge in the barrel and pulled out a sickly colored bullet. “A gift from your late father.”

Loki shuddered again in Tony’s grasp violently, and Tony wrapped his arms around him tightly. “I don’t – ” Tony started before the realization dawned on him.

Looking down at Loki in his arms, the pained expression across his face, the bullet holes  _bleeding_  profusely when the should’ve healed by now. Tony’s blood ran cold. The hijacked train yesterday hadn’t been carrying extra weaponry parts.

“I’ve been asked to scratch you off the list, Stark,” Doctor Doom laughed, a hollow unnerving sound. “And it’ll be a pleasure to take both you and  _him_  out.”

His hands flashed a bright magenta as he heaved them over his head. The crackle of magic burst through the hallway, a blue light that fought against Doom’s red and exploded, throwing him into the next room over, and the room beyond that one. Tony looked outside the window and saw the blue outline of Wiccan in the distance. He fumbled for Loki’s ear piece, unhooking it from his shell and equipping it himself.

“Wiccan?”

“Tony!” He sounded surprised. “What the hell are you two still doing here, Loki said he was going to get you out.”

“He can’t, I need you to get us out of here, all of us,” Tony’s voice shook.

“We’re busy keeping the Doombots from the civilians,” he replied, turning to look towards the battle below.

The rest of the team had split up into groups of three, Kate, Eli, and Cassie on the south end, Hulking, Speed and Wiccan at the east. Kate and Eli ran together; she fired down Doombots a little slower than they were swarming together and as they fell, Eli picked up her arrows, temporarily using them himself to fight off a stray Doombot or two that flew in close before handing them back to Kate so she could fire again. Every so often she used a trick arrow on a group, the explosion tips proving incredibly useful. Cassie headed off on the back, swatting away a handful of Doombots at a time. Hulkling wrestled two at a time down to the ground, exploding into pieces before he took to the skies again. Wiccan had been covering Speed before he felt Tony’s presence still in the area. He was sitting still for once, eyes up to the sky and his hands out, jittering almost too fast for the human eye to keep up with. The Doombots he targeted began to shake, atoms ripping apart before they vaporized into nothing. The raw energy shield Wiccan had been keeping up had temporarily been taken down to fire a lightning strike at Doom.

“No, you don’t understand, we  _need to leave_ ,” Tony stressed, situating Loki into his arms awkwardly. He began slowly walking down the hallway towards the staircase with him. “Doom has Howard’s serum. He shot Loki with it and it took away his magic.”

The color from Wiccan’s face drained. He twisted his body around and flew towards the team, hands out as he tried to quickly erect the shield again. His focus was lost though, panic filling him now and before he could bring the shield back Tommy jerked forward, his body going rigid.

“Tommy!” Wiccan screamed, flying to his brother’s side.

Speed fell to his knees and caught himself on shaky arms, eyes wide with pain behind his goggles. His vision blurred, whether it was from the pain in his right shoulder or something else he wasn’t sure. He could hear his blood flowing, could almost feel it passing through his veins, slow and thick. It felt weird, like he wanted to claw at his skin. Everything felt so damn slow. Next to him, he could hear Billy calling his name, his hands on his shoulders and Tommy jerked away, too slow. He felt a dizzy wave crash over him and felt like he needed to vomit.

“Don’t touch me!” He shouted as Billy moved a hand out to him again.

His voice sounded wrecked, trembling as he tried to fill his lungs with oxygen. He could feel them expand, tighten when he exhaled, expand again and it was too much. Tommy’s next exhale was breakfast all over the asphalt.

Billy’s hands shook at his sides and his eyes began to glow a heavy blue. He turned his gaze skyward and raised his hands, a fluorescent blue encasing them. Clouds churned above him and lightning crackled across the sky without its thundering counterpart. Wiccan lifted off the ground, hovering over Tommy. Anger surged through him, fueled his magic as his hands flashed brightly and a flurry of lightening strikes fell from the sky, attacking the Doombots. Energy left Wiccan in waves, hitting everything within his altitude. Hulkling dove to skirt the ground, hands outstretched to catch the mage. He made a harsh U-turn, dodging the bullets firing down from the remaining Doombots. With a free hand, Hulkling snatched Tommy up as well before heading straight towards what was left of the Stark Industries building. They landed in the lobby and Hulking set Tommy down gently behind the reception desk before turning his attention to Wiccan.

“Billy,” he said sternly, putting his hands on either side of the brunette’s face. “Bee, calm down, deep breathes. It’s okay, Tommy’s alive he’s okay. Billy, breath. You need to breath.”

Wiccan took in a shuddering breath, his whole body a shaking wreck in Teddy’s hands. He held it and the blonde began counting to ten out loud. By the time he reached five, the radiating blue glow in Billy’s eyes began to fade and by one they were brown again. He let out the air slowly through his mouth.

“Look at me, you’re okay,” Teddy nodded, offering a small smile. “Calm down, we’re okay.”

“Says… the person who… wasn’t shot,” Tommy said weakly.

Billy turned his gaze to his brother. “Tommy?” His voice cracked.

“I’m fine just… don’t fucking… touch me holy shit…” he curled in on himself, turning onto his side. “I can fucking feel… everything inside me functioning… and it’s fucking weird.”

“What’s going on?” Teddy asked, letting go of Billy’s face.

He took in another deep breath, feeling his magic surge again. “Tony said that, uhm… said that Doom has Howard’s serum. The stuff that d-depowers us.”

“Wha – how?”

“I… I don’t know, I don’t know,” Billy swallowed a knot in his throat and tore his eyes away from Tommy to look at Teddy. “We need to get the rest of the team out of there, find Tony and Loki, and leave.”

“Kate?” Teddy put his hand over his ear. “Can you hear us?”

“Hulkling?” Kate said, sounding out of breath. In the background came an explosion. “Hulkling where are you guys, Cassie’s down!”

“Was she shot?” Teddy asked, and Billy mouthed ‘who’. He replied ‘Cassie’.

“Yeah, and she shrunk instantly. Eli’s got her now, we’re – ” Kate interrupted herself, letting lose another arrow to clear their path. “ – we’re heading towards the west side of the building. Cassie can’t move.”

“We’re at east, we need to group up and get out.”

“Roger.”

“Tony?” Teddy radioed. “Where are you?”

Tony didn’t answer immediately, out of breath and resting momentarily along a wall. Loki had hyperventilated himself into an unconscious state. Blood was flowing freely out of his wounds, unable to regenerate with the serum flowing through his system. Tony could feel it soaking into his sleeve and down his arm.

“Second floor, stairwell, heading to the southeast corridor with Loki,” he answered, heaving Loki in his arms again before returning to his descend. “You guys?”

“Me, Wiccan, and Speed are in the east lobby, Kate, Eli, and Cassie heading west. Both Speed and Cassie have been shot.”

Tony swallowed hard, looking down at Loki. “How’re they holding up?”

“Cassie’s having a hard time moving and Tommy doesn’t want us to touch him, but otherwise they’re conscious,” Teddy answered. “Loki?”

“Unconscious, but breathing.”

Above him, the emergency staircase doors blasted off its hinges and clamored down the center of the stairwell. Tony moved to the outer part of the staircase, to avoid being hit. A reddish glow emitted from above and Tony knew he had to hurry. He hastily took two steps at a time, using the wall as a balanced leverage. Halfway down to the first floor, Doctor Doom sent a magic wave down the stairwell, breaking the cement staircase. Tony braced himself, curled around Loki to do what he could to protect him. The magic hit his floor and everything around him broke away. The stairwell collapsed, exploding outwards into the parking lot. Tony fell on his side, probably spraining something if not breaking. The air knocked out of him, and he let out a painful gasp as he tried to breath. Between his blurred vision and the debris falling from the stairs, he could see the imminent glow of Doom’s magic. Despite the whining in his bones, Tony got back up onto his feet and made a B-line for the east end lobby. He barely got a quarter of the way there before Doctor Doom landed on the ground floor. Tony didn’t bother turning around to look, he could hear the crackle of magic flowing through the hallway. The windows shattered, the ground shook, and Tony staggered to the ground. He turned his head, eyes catching Doom’s green against the bright red of his magic.

Everything around him stopped, his breathing, his fear, Doctor Doom. Tony figured this was it, the end, and braced himself around Loki. A sound like whining electricity caught his ears and grew progressively louder, quickly, before Thor’s hammer crashed through what was left of the floor to ceiling windows and slammed into Doctor Doom. Tony let out a sigh of relief, albeit a shuddering one, as he turned his gaze to the parking lot. He saw the red cape flowing against the high winds he conjured, hand outstretched and ready to catch Mjolnir. The darkening sky flashed briefly, screamed with thunder. Behind him, Tony caught waves of dark red pulsing through the air and catching the Doombots within its grasp. They immediately exploded and the Scarlet Witch, hovering through the air with her hands clenched above her head sent out another wave of fiery energy. Doctor Doom emerged from the newly made hole, hands crackling with his own magic. Suddenly he jerked forward, flying out of the building and skidding towards Thor and the Hulk who had just recently joined them. Quicksilver stepped out after Doom, shaking his right hand with a pained expression on his face.

“Fuckin’ metal,” he murmured, turning to face Tony. “Stay put.”

Without waiting for recognition, Quicksilver was off in a streak of green and white. He zipped off to help Captain America near the dome shaped building, helping gather civilians and picking off stray Doombots without a swarm. Thor and Hulk faced off with Doctor Doom and if Tony wasn’t paralyzed with shock he’d shout something about the serum. They were professionals though, and if he didn’t know better, S.H.I.E.L.D. had probably known about Doom’s little stunt before he figured it out thirty minutes ago.

“Tony!” Hulkling shouted from the other end of the hall. He had Tommy in his arms, despite the writhing and complaining. Wiccan didn’t look any less out of shock than Tony did, floating quietly behind Teddy.

Tony waved a hand at him, unable to speak just yet.

“Are you okay?” Wiccan asked in an unstable tone. Tony nodded, then shook his head, nodded again. “We need to go.”

Tony nodded again, this time in agreement, and wobbled onto his legs, dragging Loki up with him. “You need to take him. I-I can’t go with you. They’ll uhm… they’re going to be looking for me in this mess, I have to b-be here.”

The mage stared at Loki, hesitantly reaching out to take him from Tony. His back felt damp, and when he readjusted him into a more comfortable position, Billy’s fingers came away red and sticky.

“Come home as quick as you can,” he said to Tony, though he kept his eyes on Loki. “We’ll… we’ll do what we can.”

“Eli, Kate, we’re coming to you, stay put,” Teddy said quietly over the intercom.

Billy mumbled about wanting to go to the west wing of Stark Industries, but the spell didn’t take. Taking a deep breath and holding it, the blue around the edges of his eyes began to fade. He tried again, stating clearer this time, and the four of them were gone, leaving Tony in the wreck of the first floor hallway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, concerns, constructive criticism, questions, cookies - feel free to leave them in the comments!
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: May 19


	13. repair, restore, rebuild, revenge

The paramedics had Tony sitting on the bumper of their ambulance with a shock blanket draped over his shoulders. One woman was on his left, pushing his bangs back to get a look at the gash slowly bleeding down his face. He promised her she didn’t need to waste time aiding him, that he really only just wanted to go home, but she insisted, guiding him to the truck. The head injury didn’t need stitches, she explained absently as the gauze was bandaged around the wound. She examined and cleaned his cuts next, and there were plenty he assured her. In the background, black armored vehicles with S.H.I.E.L.D. plastered on the sides in white surrounded a recently apprehended Doctor Doom. Captain America’s team wasn’t designated for this far outside the city, but with Thor and the Scarlet Witch on hand having a personal interest, Tony figured they’d come regardless. Iron Fist’s group stood on the sidelines, speaking with Quicksilver and the good captain. Thor and Wanda broke away, their footsteps leading to the ambulance Tony occupied.

“Could you excuse us for the time being,” the Scarlet Witch asked the paramedic tending over the kid billionaire. “I can take care of what ails him.”

The paramedic didn’t seem to be in any hurry to disregard Wanda’s request and removed herself from the conversation. Tony watched her leave and worked his attention up to the two superheroes. The Scarlet Witch held a schooled expression, but Tony could see behind her eyes was the wrath of a mother Doctor Doom had incurred upon himself. Thor wore his heart on his sleeve, an emotion between vexation and concern lighting up his face.

“We need to talk,” Thor started as Wanda leaned forward, hand a dull glow.

“Yeah, yeah we do,” Tony nodded a little erratically. His voice was light, airy, borderline hysterical. “An information swap would be really helpful right now, I think.”

They fell quiet momentarily as the Scarlet Witch worked her magic. Her hand fell upon his forehead, thumb just barely brushing against his hairline, and a soft warmth began to fill him from the top down. The dull pain of the head injury faded first, then the stiffness in his shoulders. The flourishing bruises across the right side of his abdomen never had a chance to turn ugly and Tony could sit a little straighter soon afterwards. Her magic felt nothing like Billy’s; his was hot and prickly, but somewhat pleasant. Loki’s was all together different from both, like a whipped wind of ice blanketing him gently. Tony’s heart jumped in his chest at the thought.

“How are you feeling?” Wanda asked, watching Tony with wide eyes. They matched Billy’s, in more than just color. Warm, like her magic and Billy’s personality, and telling. He wondered, very briefly, if hers were outlined in crimson when she used her magic, or if that was a side effect of Billy’s instability. “Better?”

“Sort of,” Tony answered. He reached up to remove the taped piece of gauze across his head. “Rain check on whether or not I’ll have a mental breakdown later – I’m still trying to take in the fact that Doctor Doom just tried to kill me.”

“And the children, Loki, are they safe?” Thor shifted in place uncomfortably, grip flexing against Mjolnir’s stunted hilt. “I caught sight of Loki in your arms, Thomas in Theodore’s.”

“I’m going to assume you know about the little train jacking that happened this weekend.” The two Avengers nodded in unison. In his peripheral, Tony could see Quicksilver making his way towards them. He was fiddling with something in his hands. “I’m also going to assume you know what the train was carrying and, more specifically, what was taken.”

Again they nodded. Pietro sauntered up between Thor and Tony, arms folded over his chest and one hand carrying a device.

“I haven’t completely assessed the situation for obvious reasons, but Doom had this gun thing, it was weird, and – and he fired it at Loki right when he was in the middle of a spell to get us the hell out. And you know,” he motioned to Thor abstractly. “You know because you’re Asgardian, healing really isn’t an issue, but – ”

Tony paused, staring blankly at his hands. They were stained red, as were the sleeves to his suit jacket gently discarded in the back of the ambulance and the white cuffs of his dress shirt. He swallowed, heart thumping against his ribcage.

“Tony?” Wanda’s voice snapped his attention back to reality.

“I think, um…” he sat his hands in his lap, out of eye sight. “I think Doctor Doom fitted Howard’s serum into bullets, I don’t know for sure, but Loki couldn’t heal himself. And, and Tommy – Teddy said he was hit too, he couldn’t use his super speed or anything and Cassie was having a hard time moving too – ”

“Who’s Cassie?” Pietro interrupted.

“Cassie L – ” Tony stopped short and finally lifted his gaze to the speedster. He’d been babbling so fervently, the name almost slipped. There were reservations about telling S.H.I.E.L.D. about their new comrades, even if he could trust Thor, Wanda, and Pietro. “That’s not the point, the point is I need to leave and fix this. Cassie, Tommy, and Loki have an unstable chemical in them, I have to go, I have – ”

“Tony,” Wanda said again, softly. She put her hand on his shoulder, causing him to look at her. His eyes were wild, dilated. “Take a moment to breath, relax, and tell us what you know about your father’s work.”

He took a brief moment to take in a deep breath, not as slowly as he shouldn’t, but Tony held it for good measure. The erratic beating of his heart began to ease into something more rhythmic.

“I-I know Howard decommissioned making the serum into a bullet a few years back because of some incident at a rally or something – but that was back when the substance was still terribly unstable. It acted, um, it acted as a degenerate then, s-so as you can imagine the results weren’t, you know, pretty,” Tony took in another deep breath and let it out in words. “His notes, specifically the last bit before he died, said he’d stabilized it into more of a suppressant. Something t-temporary, so, you know, maybe, I won’t have to fix anything but I don’t know, I don’t – ”

“Would this help?” Pietro put his hand out and uncurled his fingers from around a rather familiar device. Doctor Doom’s weapon, the one he’d used to shoot Loki with. It looked hastily made, but that didn’t particularly matter at this point – it served its purpose.

“We can’t let him have that,” Wanda said quietly, giving her brother a look.

“Just the bullets then. We already cleaned up what Doombots were left, the science team’s got more than enough to play around with,” he fiddled with the weapon, making an unpleasant face. “They’ll be okay, though, right? The kids?”

The hardness in his voice almost covered his concern. Almost. Tony nodded. They hadn’t exploded, so he figured all things considered they were, to his knowledge, still alive. Pietro managed to knock out the three bullets that remained in Doctor Doom’s weapon, and he gingerly handed them to Tony.

“Put ‘em to good use.”

“Thanks…” he mumbled, pocketing them. “And I’m sorry.” Before any of them had the chance to ask what for, Tony pushed himself off the end of the ambulance, excusing himself with a quiet, “I have to go.”

They didn’t try to stop him, though Thor took a step forward as if he wanted to. Pietro made a small noise in his throat, folding his arms over his chest again.

“Shouldn’t we intervene?” He asked, looking to Wanda. “I told you they’d get in over their heads.”

The idea had been considered, and she glanced over her shoulder at Tony. “Give them time, I trust they can handle it.”

“They were here because Tony was here,” Thor added, turning to his comrades. “Had he not, I believe the situation would be different. They know better than to strife with the likes of Doctor Doom.”

“Do they?” Pietro lifted an eyebrow at him.

Wanda pressed her lips into a thin line, and Thor opened his mouth to answer agreeably before he, too, shut his mouth.

 

\- - -

 

Tony had to be driven home in a police car, not only because Happy’s limousine had suffered damage during the attack, but the New York Police Department didn’t feel safe letting him go without an escort. He didn’t particularly care one way or another, as long as he managed to get home. The officer driving told him that he wouldn’t have to worry though, S.H.I.E.L.D. had Doctor Doom in custody. The one in the passenger’s seat made comment to the Young Avengers a little later, something snide, and Tony fidgeted in the backseat. The blood on his hands were beginning to flake off and he picked at it idly, watching Manhattan come into view out the window.

The crowd outside of his mansion had increased tenfold and the officers almost couldn’t get through the gates. Tony let himself out, despite the driver getting out to open the door for him, and managed a sincere thank you before heading into the house. It amazed him that the tabloids had nothing else better to do than to heckle him about the situation; Obadiah would’ve been a much better subject. Tony’s hand tightened around the doorknob at the thought – Obadiah. He’d have to give him a warm phone call eventually. The front door shut with a soft click and Tony took a moment for himself. He leaned his back up against it, and could just barely hear the people outside shouting for him. And then someone else was shouting for him, and Tony almost didn’t register it as Billy as he clamored down the stairs.

“Tony?” He called again, footsteps falling quickly.

Tony didn’t make a sound, only looked up between his disheveled bangs at Billy who didn’t look to be in any better of a condition than he was. He’d changed out of his uniform and was wearing a plain T-shirt with jeans. It was clear no one had taken the time to clean themselves up beyond that, Billy’s face was still caked with dirt and his hands were sticky and red with blood.

“Are you – ”

“How are – ”

Their words tangled and they both stopped. Billy motioned to the other.

“You first.”

“How are they?”

Billy fidgeted, shifting his weight from one leg to the other. “I can’t heal them, my magic can’t touch them. Whatever that serum is, it blocks incoming powers too. Kate managed to stitch up their wounds though, there weren’t any bullets to take out. We think they disintegrated. Tommy and Cassie are conscious, and Cassie can move now. Loki is still… not in great condition. But alive.”

Tony nodded and pushed himself off the door. “Where are they?”

“In their rooms.”

The boys started towards the staircase, walking swiftly and silently until they heard shouting. Tony stopped between steps and Billy continued, looking back at the other.

“Tommy’s throwing a fit, it’s nothing,” he explained. “He said he feels hypersensitive about everything and Kate’s having a hard time trying to stitch up his wound. He’s also got a thing about needles.”

Further up the stairs, Tony could hear Teddy’s soothing voice and Kate’s irritable tone piercing through the walls. They passed two open doors on the way to Tommy’s room. Cassie and Eli were sitting on the edge of the bed in the first room, chatting quietly until the boys passed. They looked up and Cassie’s smile was much warmer than Eli’s. The second room was Loki’s. His books from the night before had been placed in the corner to make room for him on the bed. Someone had pried his tunic off so Kate could tend to his wounds. He didn’t look as peaceful in his sleep as he had when Tony saw him the other night. Tommy’s bedroom door was shut, but the yelling sounded clear as day.

It took a good half hour to wrestle Tommy into sitting still long enough for Kate to sew the bullet hole in his left shoulder blade shut. Like the others, there had been no trace of the bullet, despite the lack of an exit wound. Tony suggested the bullets may have disintegrated and blood samples to prove it. The speedster whined about needles again. Regardless of whether or not Tony promised it to be painless, he still fidgeted and complained. Cassie hadn’t even blinked as her blood was taken, and Kate teased Tommy about it. Tony requested samples of blood from Billy, Teddy, and Eli as well, for further studies.

“I’ll do some tests on these with the bullets your uncle gave me,” he explained on his way down the stairs, Billy trailing after him. “But first, I need a shower.”

In the shower, connected to the master bedroom he rarely slept in, is when the gravity of the situation seemed to sink in and hit home. Loki’s blood didn’t seem to want to wash out from underneath his fingernails and the rivulets of water pooling at his feet came away muddy and red. Doctor Doom had killed people he knew, tried to kill  _him_  for reasons Tony couldn’t even begin to know. Pressing his back against the cool tiles, Tony let out a raspy gasp and slid down until his rear touched the warmer floor tiles.

When Fury asked him to do this, Tony knew he should’ve said no. It was Wanda’s silently pleading face and Thor’s persuasive positivity that led Tony to really consider the idea of joining up with a ragamuffin group of superhero kids. In the end, he’d joined for selfish reasons, neither of which were on Fury’s agenda or their guardians’. It would be fun, living up to his childhood fantasy, and it was. They saved people, they  _inspired_  people. Had what little the team had done really given Doctor Doom such a vicious motive?

No, because it hadn’t been the team he was after, not even Iron Man, just Tony. Loki had been a happy accident to Doctor Doom. The team had been caught up in an ordeal they didn’t need to be because of Tony. If he hadn’t been at Stark Industries, they wouldn’t have gone. Then again, if Tony hadn’t been at Stark Industries, what then? Would Doctor Doom had come to his home? Off the streets? Tony dug the heels of his palms into his eyes. There was still the question of why, but sitting naked on the floor of his shower wasn’t going to answer anything. It wasn’t going to solve the problem at hand either.

Tony sucked in a deep breath through his mouth and exhaled through his nose. What he needed to focus on was his team, researching Howard’s serum and how to reverse the effects. He may not be able to answer the questions troubling him, but he could help his team.

 

\- - -

 

Mutant blood was a tricky ordeal. Tony came to realize this very quickly as he experimented with his team’s blood samples. Even trickier was Howard’s formula for the serum and how it reacted. After melting the bullets into a liquid form and separating everyone’s blood into dishes, Tony placed one carefully measured droplet of serum into each dish.

Tommy and Cassie’s blood didn’t react at all, being that it was already infected with the serum earlier. The liquefied serum sat stagnant in the blood and didn’t mix. Tony could only assume the same would happen if he’d taken a sample of Loki’s blood as well, though he hadn’t due to how much he’d lost during the fiasco. Teddy’s blood reacted the most violent, and Tony could only spill theory upon theory as to why. His powers were biological, both equal amounts Kree and Skrull, and thus connected with his body thoroughly. The serum mixed immediately as it touched the blood, which began to sizzle and spit over the edges of the dish. At a closer look beneath the microscope, the blood cells had shriveled and lost their color, floating dead under the weight of the new rusted gold color of the serum. Tony guessed that if Eli’s super soldier abilities had been biological instead of given through transfusion, the effect would’ve been similar. Instead, his blood cells only lost their color, but retained their plump shape. He wasn’t sure, however, if the violent nature of Teddy’s blood had been because he was alien. Should the bullet even be able to pierce his skin, Teddy would be in the biggest risk of danger. Billy’s blood mixed with the serum just as Eli’s had, sharing similar effects.

The difference, Tony theorized, lied within the powers. Loki had been halfway through his spell before Doctor Doom shot him. Despite the apparent pain he’d been in and the lack of regenerative powers, they weren’t sure how else the serum effected him. Tommy’s problems were obvious as he wouldn’t stop complaining. The sudden loss of super speed seemed to slow everything, so much though that it left him hyperaware of his bodily functions. Cassie didn’t have such a side effect, rather she felt the least hindered out of the three. She’d been unable to move for a while because she’d reported feeling a numbness all over her body. Tony couldn’t be positive whether any of this had anything to do with their powers specifically, or if the instability of the serum caused odd side effects.

JARVIS pulled up all of Howard’s catalogued notes both on the home server and the company server for Tony to read through. He started from the most recent entry backwards. The further back he went, the more horrific the entries got. It was obvious, however, that Howard had intended it to be a temporary suppressant used by police, and perhaps even S.H.I.E.L.D., to tranquilize the enemy at bay long enough to get he or she into custody. None of the tests had proven successful in being temporary, and Tony assumed Doctor Doom’s bullets were no different. He pulled the formula for the serum off the main screen and placed it onto another before spreading out all of the notes onto separate screens. Right as Tony began to upload his own recordings on his recent blood tests, Eli and Kate rushed into the lab, calling his name.

“Loki’s awake.”

Tony didn’t hear anything until they were about three fourths of the way up the stairs and heading towards the bedrooms. It sounded like Billy and Teddy, nothing aggressive, but concerned as something Tony could only guess was the furniture scraping across the floor. The door to Loki’s room was still open and when Tony peered inside he saw the brunette and the blonde holding the thrashing god-ling against the bed by his arms and torso.

“Get his legs!” Billy managed as he dodged a wild kick.

Eli carefully approached them, snatching up one ankle with both hands before changing to grab the other. Loki opened his mouth, probably to scream, but only managed a breathy gasp and more struggling.

“Loki, you’re awake,” Billy said, pushing his weight onto his hips. “You’re at Stark Mansion, calm down!”

“Loki?” Tony stepped further into the room, just a few steps behind Teddy. He was holding Loki’s hands above his head, lithe wrists in one, shape shifted hand. “Let him go, I think you’re freaking him out.”

“He was trying to claw at his face when he woke up, this is for his own safety,” Teddy explained, looking over his shoulder.

It didn’t take long for Loki to tire himself out, what with his wounds and suppressed powers. Billy let go of Loki first, and then Eli at his legs. He managed a little kick at the super soldier and ended up nudging his hand. Teddy only released his hands when Loki’s breathing slowed into something even and rhythmic. His eyes were wide, pupils contracted so much so that his eyes looked unreal and glassy. Around his laugh lines and chin were red, swelling lines made by his blunt nails raking across his skin, but the flesh hadn’t broken. Eventually his eyes dilated slowly and his chest rose and fell with the shallow, slow breathes Loki took in. The expression on his face was very human.

“Loki?” Billy called softly. “Are you okay now?”

He shook his head, swallowing hard as he lifted a hand to motion to his throat.

“Water?” He guessed and took a step away from the bed to retrieve a glass when Loki’s hand shot out and gripped his wrist. “What?”

Billy looked at Loki’s face and then at his hand as his fingers tightened brutally around his wrist. Loki shook him and with his free hand, motioned to his throat again. He opened his mouth and he gasped again, painfully.

“Oh,” Billy’s eyes widened, the realization sinking in. “ _Oh_.”

“What?” Kate asked from the doorway.

“Silenced his silver tongue,” Tony quoted and Loki shot a wild look at him. “That’s what Doom said when I asked him what he’d done.”

“That’s a mage’s source of power, really,” Billy nodded in agreement. “We can’t do much if we can’t say the spell. Is your magic gone too?”

Loki nodded, flicking his sights between Billy and Tony.

“He was shot three times,” the billionaire reminded. “The instantaneous exposure to that much might’ve effected Loki differently. The serum doesn’t seem to effect already infected blood.”

“Is it permanent?” Eli asked.

“Can you fix it?” Kate followed up.

“I don’t know,” Tony turned to look at Eli, eyes churning with resolve. “So far, it’s proven itself to be permanent but it’s barely been twenty-four hours so I don’t know for sure. But I’ll fix it, regardless.”

Tony didn’t know how to start, though. Even with a seemingly overwhelming amount of information from Howard, from his blood work, it didn’t feel like enough. His lab illuminated with a dozen open screens filled with written research, visually documented experiments, and most importantly the formulas for each newly procured serum. In the center of it all, Tony stood with a three dimensional hologram of the periodic table. He’d pluck one element from the table and stick it to another, and then another, until he created another element completely that only proved to be a theoretical failure when JARVIS ran it through the system. Tony waved his hand at the elemental blocks and they disappeared, and he started from scratch.

Within two days, Tony had made little success. The team kept him fed, usually Kate or Billy coming down the steps with pizza or Chinese food, sometimes a home cooked meal courtesy of Eli or Teddy. They couldn’t keep him on a sleep schedule, and with a coffee machine in the lab there wasn’t much they could do about it. Cassie came around every so often to chit chat and let him know she had to go home. The excuse of staying over at Kate’s house was growing stale and her mom and step-dad wanted her home eventually. Eli, too, was in and out of the mansion, but whenever his mother and grandfather didn’t need him, he’d be quick to shoot Billy a text and he’d be right back with the team. The original group had to admit Eli, Cassie, and Kate were rather resolute with the whole idea of being a part of a team of teenage superheroes, given everything that’d happened during their first bout. Teddy made it clear to them that they hadn’t intended to go after big game like Doctor Doom, and they seemed to accept that.

Around eight o’ clock in the morning, day three of continuous consciousness, Tony fell asleep on his workbench without meaning to as he waited for another pot of coffee to ready. It wasn’t until one o’ clock in the morning the next day that he woke up, and he wasn’t sure he would’ve if he hadn’t heard JARVIS speaking at a lower volume in the background.

“ _How interesting, young sir,_ ” he mused quietly. “ _May I have the name for this data entry?_ ”

“JARVIS…” Tony mumbled into the crook of his arm, using one hand to wipe the sleep from his eyes. “Who the hell’re you talking too?”

“ _Loki, sir_ ,” answered JARVIS, volume a little louder this time.

“Loki?” He repeated dumbly. Lifting his head from the table and his makeshift arm pillow, Tony surveyed the room, finding said friend in the center of his hurricane of research. “Oh, Loki.”

Loki managed a small wave, not bothering to look up from his work as he snatched two more elements from the floating periodic table and smashed them together with another rig.

“What’re you doing?” Tony asked, sitting upright and stretching. Loki tilted his head up enough to offer him a dark look, pressing his lips into a thin line. “Oh, right, sorry. Go ahead and type it into the computer.”

Loki didn’t do so right away, instead continued with his little project, spinning around his element before taking another from the table to add it into the collection. Tony stood up from the bench and walked through a few screens to peer over Loki’s shoulder. He opened his mouth to say something obvious until he noticed something a little less obvious, at least to Tony.

“Are you wearing my Def Leppard T-shirt?”

Even from the angle he stood at, he could see part of Loki’s expression. He saw his jaw relax and ends of his lips twitch upward into what he could only imagine that from the front looked like a smug, shit-eating smirk. Eventually, he let the grouping of elements stay floating in mid-air to turn his attention to a screen he’d already been typing to JARVIS with.

_I had to change out of my dirty clothing and I cannot use my magic anymore so I borrowed yours. I like this one._  The shirt had been from their On Through The Night tour in 1980. It fit Loki a little better than it did Tony, at least length-wise, but the short beige sleeves hung a little loosely around his arms.  _I am documenting elements not yet entered into your system._

“That’s because this isn’t an element,” Tony lifted the grouping up to get a better look at it, twisting it around and enlarging it.

Loki snatched it back from him, eyes narrowed.  _It is on Asgard._

“Oh.”

They fell into silence soon after, if only because Tony wasn’t up for a mostly one-sided conversation. As Loki worked on his newest element, Tony gave a look through of the ones he’d already catalogued. There were only three prior, but they were extensive and complicated, thorough. He wondered, briefly, if S.H.I.E.L.D. had a copy of these elements, courtesy of Thor.

“How are you feeling?” Tony asked, filing away the information for a later time. “Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

That earned him another dirty look.

“Look, I don’t mean to be a mother hen, I’m just saying you lost a lot of blood, you’re without magic,” Tony moved into Loki’s immediate eyesight now. “And you look like you haven’t slept at all.”

Loki opened his mouth to speak, probably shout, but all that came out was another ragged gasp. His face twisted to something akin to frustration and anger. Letting the holographic elements go, he moved his hands to type.

_I feel very human without my magic._ Loki took a moment to pause, look up at Tony.  _I need a distraction._

“You need some sleep.”

_No._  Tony opened his mouth to press the idea but Loki typed in again,  _no._   _I want to help fix this. Jarvis said you cannot find a formula to battle your father’s. I was under the impression that if no Earth element can be of use perhaps one of Asgard can._

“Oh,” the brunette’s eyes widened. “Holy shit, that’s brilliant!”

_Yes I know._

“No, wait, no, Loki!” Tony grabbed the other’s hands, grinning like a lunatic. “Are there any regenerative properties in these elements? Something not magic, just, like, pure science. Because, really, the serum, it’s a suppressant, but it’s doing that by killing – no, not killing you’d have exploded – ugh, the word, JARVIS, what am I looking for?”

“ _Nullify, sir?_ ”

“ _Nullifying!_ The serum is nullifying everything by just covering it up, it’s attaching itself to you! That’s why it just sits in Tommy and Cassie’s blood, it’s got nothing to attach itself to – wait, hold that thought,” Tony let go of Loki to type something into the computer. “We need something like a white blood cell to get it off, it’s like a sickness, do you have something like that? On Asgard, Loki?”

Loki blinked at him, almost surprised at the sudden outburst. He nodded slowly, taking up the element he’d been working on and destroyed it. His movements were slow, hesitant almost as if he were trying to remember it exactly.

“Is this something I can make here?” Tony began to interrupt, but Loki shushed him by putting a hand on his face. “Okay, shutting up.”

This one was no less complex than the ones prior, if not more so. It contained another Asgardian element, and Loki typed into the computer that recreating this was not outside of Tony’s skill, but would require time and technology he didn’t have quite yet.

_Run it through your computer and if it works leave the rest to me_.

“JARVIS, do a simulation please.”

“ _Yes, sir._ ”

The program ran its course and spun its wheels, and JARVIS produced a progress bar underneath Tony’s notes. It would take a while, they had to work in the unfamiliar elements with an unstable one, calculate the percentages of success, the weight of the dosage versus the amount of serum infecting the body. Tony continued typing out his notes above the progress bar, and Loki stood next to him quietly reading. The typing was frantic, the sentences shorthand as if Tony’s fingers couldn’t keep up with his thoughts. Much like the way he spoke when he got excited. He turned to Loki, who looked to be falling asleep standing up.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

Loki moved his hands to the monitor.  _Fine. Tired._

“Then sleep, I’ve got the couch over there for a reason,” Tony motioned behind him haphazardly.

_Because you were using it earlier?_ Loki smirked quickly before it fell.  _I woke in a panic earlier because of a dream. I believe it to be a memory._ His fingers twitched to type something else, but he let them fall and Tony didn’t push the subject.

The progress bar skimmed across at a slow, steady pace, reaching about sixty percent.

“I’m sorry,” Tony said absently. “About this mess.”

Loki frowned.  _We chose to go rescue you because you are a part of this team, a friend. If we had known Doctor Doom was behind it we may have gone in with more tact._ He shrugged and rolled his eyes.  _But it wouldn’t have deterred our rescue plan._

“Yeah, but – ”

Loki planted his hand on Tony’s face for the second time that morning to quiet him, and he laughed against the palm.

“Okay, okay.”

Loki smiled in response, close-lipped and weary, but a smile all the same.

“ _Sir?_ ” JARVIS interrupted quietly.

“Hm?” Tony hummed behind Loki’s hand.

“ _The analysis is complete, the structure of the elements contain a ninety-two percent success rate to act as a deterrent against your father’s serum._ ”

“I can work with ninety-two!” He exclaimed, pulling Loki’s hand away. “Can you work with ninety-two?”

Loki nodded vigorously, a newfound brightness in his eyes. He pushed at Tony, towards the door leading to the staircase. They needed to tell everyone the good news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's still Monday on the west coast! Excuses aside, this was terribly late and I sincerely apologize! As usual, comments, concerns, constructive criticism, questions, cookies are always welcomed in the comments section.
> 
> NEXT UPDATE: shooting for May 26 but fair warning, it may be later in the week. I've got my sister's graduation and celebrations and family to attend to this upcoming week and weekend, but there will be an update next week for sure!


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